THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  ILLINOIS 
LIBRARY 

From  the  collection  of 
Julius  Doerner,  Chicago 
Purchased,  1918, 

823 

G764-S 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2016 


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https://archive.org/details/secretdespatch00gran_0 


rC-  ■ 


: ; ■- 


THE 


i-  ( 


SECRET  DISPATCH 


JAMES  GRANT. 


New  York: 

JOHN  W.  LOVELL  COMPANY, 


14  & 16  Vesey  Street. 


I'M;>  at  'l\ 

! I ! ■ 


<r 

<r 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


((  T^EAYEN  aid  me  I where  am  I now — which 

•!•/  way  shall  I turn — advance  or  retire  ? ” ex- 
claimed Balgonie,  as  his  horse  came  plunging 
down,  almost  on  its  knees,  amid  wild  gorse  and 
matted  jungle. 

A cold  day  in  the  middle  of  April  had  passed 
away  ; a pale  and  cheerless  sun,  that  had  cast  no 
heat  on  the  leafless  scenery,  and  the  half -frozen 
marshes  that  border  the  Louga  in  Western  Russia, 
had  sunk,  and  the  darkness  of  a stormy  night  came 
on  rapidly.  The  keen  blast  of  the  north,  that  swept 
the  arid  scalps  of  the  Dudenhof  (the  only  range  of 
hills  that  traverses  the  ancient  Ingria),  was  bellow- 
ing through  a gorge,  where  the  Louga  poured  in 
foam  upon  its  passage  to  the  Grulf  of  Finland,  be- 


CHAPTER  I 


THE  LOST  TRAVELER. 


2 


THE  8E0JRET  DISPATCH. 


tween  steep  banks  that  were  covered  by  gloomy 
pines,  when  the  speaker,  a mounted  officer  in 
Russian  uniform,  who  seemed  too  surely  to  have 
lost  his  way,  reined  up  a weary  and  mud-covered 
horse  on  the  margin  of  the  stream,  and  by  the  light 
that  yet  lingered  on  the  tops  of  the  tall  pines,  and 
gilded  faintly  the  metal-covered  domes  of  a distant 
building  on  the  opposite  bank,  looked  hopelessly 
about  him  for  the  means  of  crossing  the  dangerous 
river. 

Where  am  I ? he  repeated,  almost  despairing- 
ly; for,  as  Schiller  sings  in  his  ‘^Song  of  the 
Bell,’’— 

“ Man  fears  the  kingly  lion's  tread  ; 

Man  fears  the  tiger’s  fangs  of  terror  ; 

And  still  the  dreadliest  of  the  dread 
Is  man  himself  in  error  I ” 

Though  clad  in  the  uniform  of  the  Russian  Regi- 
ment of  Smolensko,  which  was  raised  in  the  famous 
Duchy  of  that  name,  the  traveler  was  neither  Mus- 
covite nor  Calmuck,  Cossack  nor  Tartar,  but  a cool, 
w^ary,  and  determined  young  Briton,  one  of  the 
many  Scottish  officers  whom  misfortune  or  ambition 
had  drawn  into  Russian  service,  both  by  sea  and 
land,  from  the  time  of  Peter  the  Great  down  to  the 
beginning  of  the  present  century  ; for  many  Scot- 
tish officers  served  in  the  Russian  fleet  with  Ad- 
miral Greig  at  the  famous  bombardment  of  Varna: 
and  it  was  such  volunteers  as  these  that  first  taught 
the  barbarous  hordes  of  the  growing  empire  the 


THE  LOST  TRAVELLER. 


3 


true  science  of  war  and  the  necessity  for  discipline. 

The  rider’s  green  uniform,  faced  with  scarlet  vel- 
vet and  richly  laced  with  gold,  was  covered  by  a 
thick  gray  pelisse  (like  our  present  patrol-jackets), 
trimmed  with  black  wolf’s  fur : he  wore  a scarlet 
forage  cap  with  a square  top,  long  boots  that  came 
above  the  knee,  and  a Turkish  sabre  that  had  once 
armed  a pasha  of  more  tails  than  one. 

“ Swim  the  river  I must,”  he  muttered,  after 
having  traversed  the  valley  in  vain,  looking  for  a 
bridge,  boat,  or  raft  of  timber ; but,  egad,  death 
may  be  the  penalty.  Well,”  he  added,  with  a gleam 
of  ire  in  his  dark  gray  eyes  and  a bitter  smile  on 
his  lip,  there  was  a time,  perhaps,  when  I little 
thought  that  I,  Charlie  Balgonie,  would  find  a 
nameless  grave  in  this  land  of  timber,  hemp,  and 
salted  hides,  where  caviare  is  a luxury,  train-oil  a 
liqueur,  and  the  air  of  Siberia  deemed  healthy  for 
all  who  have  any  absurd  ideas  of  political  freedom, 
or  are  silly  enough  to  imagine  that  a man  may  be 
the  lord  of  his  own  proper  person.” 

To  add  to  his  troubles  and  discomfort,  though 
the  month  was  April — usually  the  most  serene  of 
the  year  in  Russia — snow-flakes  were  beginning  to 
fall,  rendering  yet  greater  the  gloom  of  the  gather- 
ing night. 

I was  to  have  found  a bridge  here.  Can  that 
Livonian  villain,  Podatchkine,  have  deluded,  and 
then  left  me  to  my  fate  ? ” 


4 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


He  knew  that  in  his  rear,  the  way  by  which  he 
had  come,  lay  half -frozen  morasses,  healthy  wastes, 
and  forests  of  spruce,  larch,  and  silver-leaved  firs — 
vast  natural  magazines  for  supplying  all  Europe 
with  masts  and  spars — the  haunt  of  the  wolf  and 
bear ; he  knew  that  to  linger  or  to  return  were 
worse  than  to  advance,  and  that  he  must  cross 
the  stream  and  seek  quarters  and  guidance  at  the 
chateau,  the  name  of  which  was  yet  unknown  to 
him. 

Tliis  was,  if  possible,  the  worst  season  for  pass- 
ing the  Louga,  which  is  always  deepest  and  most 
navigable  in  spring.  It  rises  in  the  district  of 
Novgorod ; and,  after  traversing  a country  full  of 
vast  forests  for  more  than  180  miles,  falls  into  the 
Gulf  of  Finland. 

Balgonie  buttoned  lightly  his  holster-fiaps,  hooked 
up  his  sabre,  assured  himself  than  an  important 
dispatch  with  which  he  was  entrusted  was  safe  in 
an  inner  pocket,  and  prepared  seriously  for  the 
perilous  task  of  swimming  his  horse  across  the 
stream. 

Again  he  looked  anxiously  at  the  chateau,  the 
abode  evidently  of  some  wealthy  noble  or  hoyar. 
Its  outline  liad  almost  disappeared  in  the  increasing 
obscurity;  the  last  faint  gleams  of  the  west  had 
faded  away  on  the  onion-shaped  roofs  of  its  turrets, 
and  a central  dome  of  polished  copper,  which  was 
cut  into  facets  like  the  outside  of  a pine-apple  (for 


THK  LOST  TRAVELLER. 


5 


there  is  much  of  the  Oriental  in  the  old  Russian 
architecture) ; but  lights  were  beginning  to  sparkle 
cheerfully  through  its  double-sashed  wdndows  upon 
the  feathery  and  funeral-like  foliage  of  the  solemn 
pine  woods. 

Could  those  who  were  comfortably,  perhaps 
luxuriously,  seated  within,  but  know  that  tliere  was 
a poor  human  being  on  the  eve,  perhaps,  of  perish- 
ing helplessly  amid  the  dark  flow  of  that  deep  and 
roaring  river ! 

Courage,  friend  Charlie ! ’’  said  the  rider  to 
himself;  and  then  he  hallooed  loudly,  as  if  to  at- 
tract attention,  but  did  so  in  vain.  The  night  was 
becoming  a very  severe  one ; the  flakes  of  snow 
fell  thicker  and  thicker  on  the  gusty  and  cutting 
blast. 

Ah  ! if  I should  perish  here — such  a fate ! ” 
thought  he,  shuddering.  Shall  I be  swept  down 
this  black  and  horrid  stream,  the  Louga,  to  be  cast 
a drowned  corpse  upon  its  banks,  to  be  found  strip- 
ped and  buried  by  wondering,  but  unpitying  serfs 
and  boors ; or  shall  I be  torn  and  mangled  by  bears 
and  wolves  ; or  borne  even  to  the  Gulf  of  Finland, 
far,  far  away,  having  thus  an  obscure  and  wretched 
fate,  without  winning  the  name  I had  hoped  to  gain 
— forgotten  even  by  those  who  wronged  me  in 
Scotland,  the  land  that  never  more  shall  be  a home 
to  me ! ” 

He  did  not  say  all  this  aloud  ; but  certainly  some 


6 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


sucli  painful  surmises  flashed  upon  him  as  he  forced 
his  snorting  and  reluctant  horse,  a vigorous  use 
of  the  spurs,  through  the  thickly  interwoven  brush- 
wood that  grew  on  the  bank  of  the  river,  the  dull 
and  monotonous  rush  of  which,  encumbered  as  it 
was  by  large  pieces  of  ice,  was  sufficient  to  appal 
even  a stouter  heart  than  that  of  tliis  young  Scot- 
tish soldier  of  fortune. 

With  a brief  invocation  on  his  lips,  he  gave  his 
horse  the  reins  and  gored  it  with  the  rowels.  A 
strong,  active,  and  clean-limbed,  but  somewhat 
undersized  animal  from  the  steppes  of  the  Ukraine, 
with  a flerce  and  angry  snort,  it  plunged  into  the 
torrent,  and  breasted  the  icy  masses  bravely. 

The  slippery  fragments  that  glided  past,  struck 
at  times  both  horse  and  rider,  forcing  them  to 
swerve  down  the  stream ; others  were  dashed  by  the 
whirling  eddies  against  the  projecting  pieces  of 
rock  or  roots  of  old  trees ; but  after  twice  nearly 
despairing  of  achieving  the  passage,  and  believing 
himself*  lost,  his  horse  trod  flrmly  on  the  opposite 
bank.  It  emerged,  panting,  snorting,  dripping,  and 
trembling  in  every  flbre,  from  tlie  flood,  and  then 
Captain  Balgonie  found  that  he  had  escaped  with 
life,  and  had  safely  passed  the  swollen  waters  of  the 
Louga ! 

Leading  his  sturdy  little  steed  by  the  bridle  and 
caressing  it  the  while,  he  made  his  way  up  the  op- 
posite bank,  guided  only  by  the  lights  in  the  man- 


THE  LOST  TRAVELLER. 


7 


sion  (or  casstle) ; but  he  proceeded  with  extreme 
difficulty,  for  the  underwood  was  thick  and  dense  as 
that  wliich  grew  round  tlie  Palace  of  the  Sleeping 
Beauty ; ere  long,  however,  he  reached  a plateau, 
the  border  of  a park  or  lawn,  and  saw  the  snow- 
whitened  walls  and  turrets  of  the  edifice  towering 
before  him. 

Rising  from  a balustraded  terrace,  with  an  arched 
porte-cochere  in  front,  the  facade  was  square,  and 
three  storied,  having  a central  dome  like  an  inverted 
punchbowl,  and  several  little  angular  towers,  tall 
and  slender  like  minarets;  these  cut  the  sky-line, 
and  were  surrounded  each  by  a broad  cornice  or 
gallery,  and  terminated  by  a bulbous-shaped  roof, 
exactly  like  an  onion  with  its  acute  end  in  the  air. 

The  lights  in  its  many  windows,  the  red  and 
yellow  colored  curtains  within,  all  indicated  warmth 
and  comfort ; while  with  the  snow  flakes  freezing 
on  his  sodden  and  saturated  uniform,  h!s  limbs  be- 
numbed, and  his  teeth  well-nigh  chattering,  Bal- 
gonie  hastily  led  his  horse  under  the  porte-cochere, 
and  applied  his  hand  vigorously  to  the  great  brazen 
knocker  on  tlie  front  door. 

It  was  speedily  opened,  and  a white-bearded 
dvornick^  or  porter,  wearing  a long  flowing  shovhah^ 
or  coat  of  fur,  lined  with  red  flannel,  admitted  him 
with  many  humble  genuflections,  at  the  same  time 
summoning  a groom  to  take  charge  of  his  horse. 

By  the  bearing  of  these  lackeys,  one  might  al- 


8 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


most  have  thought  that  the  Captain  had  been  ex- 
pected, or  was  a friend  of  the  family : but  a uniform 
has  ever  been  an  all-powerful  passport,  and  an 
epaulette  the  most  mighty  of  all  introductions  in 
Russia,  where  everything  is  measured  by  a military 
standard ; thus,  in  an  incredibly  short  space  of 
time,  the  wants  of  rider  and  horse  were  alike  hos- 
pitably attended  to. 


CHAPTER  II. 


THE  CASTLE  OF  LOUGA. 

a APT  AIK  BALGrOKIE,  of  the  Regiment  of 
Smolensko,  soon  found  himself  in  a comfort- 
able bed-chamber,  where  the  genial  glow  of  a 
peitcKka^  or  Russian  wall-stove,  diffused  warmth 
through  his  chilled  frame,  and  where  every  current 
of  the  external  atmosphere  was  carefully  excluded 
by  double  window  sashes,  adorned  with  artificial 
flowers  between. 

When  he  chose  to  repose,  a couch  draped  with 
snow-white  curtains,  and  having  a coverlet  of  the 
softest  fur,  awaited  him  ; and  above  it  hung  a little 
holy  picture  of  the  Byzantine  school,  a Holy  Yirgin, 
with  a halo  of  shining  metal  in  the  form  of  a horse- 
shoe round  her  head,  if  he  chose  to  be  devout  and 
offer  up  a prayer. 

A valet,  after  supplying  him  with  hot  coffee  and 
a good  dram  of  vodka  (which  somewhat  reminded 
him  of  his  native  mountain  dew  ”),  said  that  the 
Count,  his  master,  would  rejoice  to  have  the  pleasure 
of  the  visitor’s  society,  after  he  had  made  a suitable 
toilet,  and  exchanged  his  wet  uniform  for  a luxuri- 
ous robe-de-chambre,  in  the  pocket  of  which  he 

9 


10 


THE  SECRET  BISPATCJS. 


took  especial  care  to  secure  his  dispatch  unseen. 

Hospitality  such  as  this,  was  not  merely  then  a 
characteristic  of  the  people,  but  was  the  result,  per- 
haps, of  a meagre  population,  and  the  absence  of 
inns ; thus  the  arrival  of  a stranger,  especially  an 
oflScer  on  duty,  at  this  Russian  mansion,  created 
little  or  no  surprise  among  its  inmates. 

He  was  ushered  into  the  presence  of  Count 
Mierowitz,  whose  name  at  once  inspired  him  with 
confidence  and  satisfaction ; for,  by  one  of  those 
singular  coincidences  which  novelists  dare  not  use 
in  fiction,  but  which  occur  daily  in  actual  and  mat- 
ter of-fact  life,”  he  had  arrived  at  a mansion  where 
he  was  not  altogether  unknown. 

I have  to  apologize  to  your  High  Excellency 
for  this  apparent  intrusion,”  said  he  ; but  I have 
been  misled  or  abandoned  by  my  guide.  I am  Cap- 
tain Balgonie,  of  the  Regiment  of  Smolensko,  and 
have  the  good  fortune  to  number  among  my  friends 
your  son.  Lieutenant  Basil  Mierowitz,  the  senior 
subaltern  of  my  company.” 

^^For  Basil’s  sake,  not  less  than  yonr  own,  Cap- 
tain, are  you  most  welcome  to  the  Castle  of  Louga,” 
replied  the  Count,  lifting  and  laying  aside  his  cap. 

He  was  a man  well  on  in  years ; his  stature  was 
not  great,  neither  was  his  presence  dignified;  he 
stooped  a little  and  w^as  thick  set,  with  a venerable 
beard,  undefiled  by  steel ; for,  like  a true  old  Mus- 
covite, he  contended  that  man  was  made  in  the 


THE  CASTLE  OE  LOUHA. 


u 


image  of  God,  and  should  neither  be  cut  or  carved 
upon.  His  eyebrows  were  white,  but  his  eyes  were 
dark,  keen,  quick,  and  expressed  a spirit  of  ready 
impulse,  for  laughter  or  for  ferocity — one,  who.  by 
turns  could  be  suave  or  irritable,  especially  when 
under  the  influence  of  wine,  which  generally  made 
him  fierce  and  stupid  ; for  never,  in  all  his  life,  had 
he  suffered  control  or  had  his  will  disputed. 

His  silver  hair  was  simply  tied  behind  with  a 
black  ribbon ; in  his  hand  he  carried  a little  cap  of 
black  wolf’s  fur,  adorned  by  rudely  set  jewels; 
he  wore  a queerly  cut  coat  of  dark  red  cloth 
trimmed  with  fur,  and  wore  breeches  of  the  same 
stuff,  and  lacked  but  a dagger  and  pistols  with 
brass  Turkish  butts  at  his  girdle,  to  seem  what  he 
really  was,  in  disposition  and  character,  a type  of 
the  boyar  of  the  old  school,  who  preferred  quess  to 
champagne,  ate  his  pancakes  with  caviare,  and  was 
proud  of  being  a specimen  of  the  old  Russian  noble, 
as  he  existed  in  the  time  of  Peter  the  Great,  when 
his  class  first  united  some  of  the  vices  and  luxuries 
of  Western  Europe  to  their  native  lawlessness  and 
hardy  ferocity. 

Such  was  Count  Mierowitz. 

When  did  you  last  see  my  son?”  he  asked,  in 
tone  more  of  authority  than  of  anxious  inquiry. 

Some  three  months  since.  Excellency:  he  has 
been  detached  on  the  Livonian  frontier.” 

And  you,  Captain ” 


12 


THE  SECRET  EISPATCE!. 


I am  proceeding  on  urgent  imperial  service  from 
Nojgorod  where  my  regiment  is  stationed  in  the 
old  palace  of  the  Czars.” 

To  whither  ? ” 

Schlusselburg.” 

The  host  changed  countenance  and  almost  mani- 
fested signs  of  discomposure  on  hearing  of  that  for- 
midable fortress  and  prison — the  veritable  Bastille 
of  St.  Petersburg,  and  he  said : 

A name  to  shudder  at — by  St.  Nicholas  it  is  ! ” 
‘‘  And,  but  for  the  feather  in  the  wax  of  my  dis- 
patch,” resumed  Balgonie  (showing  a red  govern- 
ment seal  in  which  a piece  of  feather  twitched  from 
a pen  was  inserted,  the  usual  Bussian  emblem  of 
speed) j I had  not,  perhaps,  tempted  the  dangers 
of  the  Louga,  but  sought  a billet  on  the  other  side, 
if  such  could  be  found.” 

You  know  not,  perhaps,  that  my  woods  are  full 
of  wolves ; but  this  is  not  the  way  to  St.  Peters- 
burg.” 

Yet  I was  so  directed,  Excellency.” 

“You  have  been  misled,  and  are  only  some 
seventy  versts  or  so  from  the  place  you  have  left.” 
“You  amaze  me.  Count,”  exclaimed  the  per- 
plexed Captain  ; for  in  the  Russian  service,  an  error 
becomes  a crime. 

“ Captain,  you  should  have  gone  by  Gori, 
Oustensk,  Spask,  and  so  on.” 

“That  devil  of  a Podatchkine,  an  orderly  of 


THi:  0A6TLE  OF  LOCGA. 


13 


General  Weymarn,  who  sent  him  specially  with  me, 
has  either  deluded  or  abandoned  me.” 

“ Yet  we  must  thank  your  Podatchkine,  in  so  far 
that  he  has  procured  us  the  pleasure  of  your  society 
in  this  lonely  place — my  daughter  and  my  niece. 
Captain  Ivanovitch  Balgonie,”  continued  the  Count, 
introducing  two  young  ladies  who  came  through 
the  curtains  of  a species  of  boudoir,  ‘‘Natalie  and 
Mariolizza  Usakoff.  Our  visitor,  Natalie,  is  that 
Ivanovitch  Balgonie  of  whom  Basil  has  spoken  so 
much  and  so  kindly.” 

Without  being  a vain  man,  Balgonie  felt  at  that 
moment  considerable  satisfaction  in  the  conviction 
that  he  was — as  his  glass  had  often  informed  him — 
decidedly  a good  looking  young  fellow,  with  regalai’ 
features,  fine  dark  eyes,  curling  brown  hair,  and  a 
smart  moustache ; for  Natalie  Mierowna,  like  her 
cousin  Mariolizza,  was  one  of  the  most  attractive 
women  at  the  dangerous  Court  of  the  Empress 
Catharine  II. ; for  it  was  during  her  reign  that  the 
story  and  the  atrocities  we  have  unfortunately  to 
record  tock  place ; when  among  us,  in  more  civilized 
Britain,  the  grandfather  of  her  present  Majesty,  old 
George  III.,  was  king,  and  the  arts  of  peace  and 
war  grew  side  by  side. 

“ The  friend  and  comrade  of  my  brother  Basil  is 
welcome,”  said  Natalie,  presenting  lier  hands  (very 
tiny  and  delicate  they  were)  to  Balgonie,  who 
bowed  and  touched  them  lightly  with  his  lips ; “ he 


14 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


has  often  written  to  us  concerning  you  and  your 
adventures  together  in  Silesia.” 

I am  but  too  fortunate  to  be  remembered 
thus.” 

“ Nay,”  rejoined  Natalie,  “ we  could  scarcely  for- 
get that  daring  act  of  yours,  which  won  you  the 
rank  you  hold  at  present.  Ah,  Basil  told  us  all 
about  that  when  he  was  last  here,”  she  added,  with 
a beautiful  smile,  of  which  she  knew  that  many  had 
already  felt  the  power. 

^^You  mean  my  reconnoitring  the  enemy’s  posi- 
tion and  avoiding  being  taken  by  them  ? ” 

“ Yes,  pray  tell  me  about  it  ? ” said  Mariolizza, 
her  blue  eyes  dilating  wiih  pleasui’e ; “ my  brother 
was  there  too — Apollo  Usakoff,  a lieutenant  in  the 
Regiment  of  Yalikolutz.” 

It  was  a very  simple  matter,”  replied  Balgonie, 
bowing  to  each  of  the  cousins,  and  not  sorry  to 
have  a good  personal  anecdote  to  relate  of  himself, 
one  which  was  certain  to  make  him  appear  to  advan- 
tage in  the  estimation  of  two  very  attractive  women. 

It  was  only  a ruse  de  guerre^  and  occurred  when 
our  Regiment  of  Smolensko  was  with  the  combined 
armies  in  Silesia,  and  before  the  King  of  Prussia 
attacked  Count  Daun  at  the  Heights  of  Buckers- 
dorff.  An  exact  account  of  the  Austrian  position 
was  required  by  our  general,  who  had  not  then  re  * 
ceived  the  orders  of  the  Empress  to  fall  back  upon 
Russian  frontier.  The  task  was  one  of  extreme 


THE  CASTLE  OF  LOUOA. 


15 


peril ; so  I being  a soldier  of  fortune,  having  all  to 

win,  and  nothing  to  lose ” 

“ Save  your  life!”  interrupted  Natalie. 

One  in  my  position,  among  a foreign  army, 
must  not  value  that  too  much,”  said  the  Captain,  in 
a tone  not  untinged  with  melancholy. 

Well  ? ” 

I volunteered  for  it,  despite  all  that  your  son, 
Count,  my  friend,  could  say  to  dissuade  me.  Well 
armed,  at  midnight,  I set  out  on  my  solitary  mis- 
sion, unattended  and  alone,  without  relinquishing 
my  uniform ; for  if  taken  prisoner  when  otherwise 
attired,  I would  infallibly  be  hanged  as  a spy ; but 
ere  long  I found,  that  in  such  a dress,  there  w^ere 
insuperable  difficulties  to  making  the  reconnoissance 
required. 

At  the  cottage  of  a Silesian  boor,  near  the  base 
of  the  Eulanbirge  (or  mountain  of  the  owis),  I stop- 
ped to  make  some  inquiries.  The  fellow  proved  to 
be  partially  tipsy  ; the  contents  of  my  pocket-flask, 
potent  vodka,  completed  his  happy  condition,  and 
after  a few  jests  I prevailed  upon  him  to  change 
dresses  with  me.  He  donned  the  green  coat, 
epaulettes,  and  boots  of  the  Regiment  of  Smolen- 
sko ; I,  the  ample  canvas  caftan  and  girdle  of  a 
Silesian  boor, — a fui’  cap,  and  a visage  daubed  with 
grime,  completed  my  costume.  Thus  attired,  and 
retaining  only  my  pistols,  I reconnoitred  safely 
and  unheeded  the  Austrian  position,  noting  the 


16 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


defences,  trenches,  fascine  batteries,  cannon,  and 
general  disposition  ; but  I had  a narrow  escape,  for 
when  returning  to  the  cottage  of  my  new  friend, 
the  boor,  a party  of  Count  Daun’s  Imperial  Cui- 
rassiers, who  had  been  patrolling  the  Eulanbirge, 
overtook  me,  and  at  once,  perceiving  I was  not  a 
Silesian,  questioned  me  rather  closely  and  curious- 

ly- 

“ I succeeded  in  passing  myself  off  as  a Pome- 
ranian ; and  pointing  to  the  cottage,  told  them  that 
there  was  concealed  an  officer  of  the  famous  Regi- 
ment of  Smolensko.  They  at  once  galloped  off  and 
surrounded  it,  while  I stole  away  to  a thicket,  and 
climbed  into  a tree,  from  whence  I could  see  the 
poor  boor,  clad  in  my  uniform,  and  still  laboring 
under  the  influence  of  his  late  debauch,  dragged  a 
prisoner — despite  all  his  bewildered  protestations 
and  denials — towards  the  camp  of  Count  Daun; 
while  I,  under  cover  of  night,  readied  in  safety  the 
lines  of  the  allies,  and  made  my  report  to  General 
Weymarn,  then  commanding  our  division  of  the 
army. 

“ It  proved  of  no  use  to  us,  as  we  fell  back  next 
day ; but  it  enabled  bur  ally,  the  King  of  Prussia, 
to  storm  with  signal  success  the  Heights  of  Buck- 
ersdorff,  to  drive  back  Count  Daun,  and  invest 
Schwiednitz.  He  offerod  me  rank  in  his  army ; but 
I declined,  on  which  the  Empress  sent  me  the  com- 
mission of  Captain  in  her  Regiment  of  Smolensko, 


THE  CASTLE  OE  LOtfCA. 


IT 


thus  enabling  me  to  rank  as  a noble  of  the  ninth 
class.” 

May  you  soon  rank  as  one  of  the  sixth,”  said 
the  Count,  patting  the  Captain  on  the  shoulder 
frankly. 

‘‘  Ah,  Excellency,  it  may  be  long  ere  I become  a 
colonel;  yet,”  he  added,  almost  as  if  talking  to 
• himself,  when  I got  the  letter  of  the  Empress  ad- 
dressed to  me,  Carl  Ivanovitch  Hospodeen^  Bah 
* Equivalent  to  Monsieur  or  Esquire, 
gonie,  I could  not  but  smile  at  the  thought  of  how 
such  a title  would  liave  sounded  in  the  ears  of  my 
good  father,  old  John  Balgonie,  of  that  Ilk  !” 

^^Let  me  repeat  that  you  are  most  welcome,” 
said  the  Count,  who  totally  failed  to  understand  the 
meaning  of  the  last  remark ; and  luckily  you  have 
arrived  just  as  the  ladies  and  I were  about  to  pro- 
ceed to  the  supper-table.” 

To  Balgonie  it  had  become  apparent  that  each 
time  he  mentioned  the  name  of  the  Empress,  the 
proud  pink  nostrils  of  Natalie  seemed  to  dilate,  and 
that  a decidedly  dangerous  expression  glittered  in 
her  splendid  dark  eyes. 

Natalie  Mierowna,  whose  beauty  had  caused  such 
jealously  at  Moscow  and  St.  Petersburg  (two  duels 
are  spoken  of  concerning  her),  had  ever  shone 
brilliantly  in  the  folldw-my deader  ” kind  of  dance, 
now  so  well  known  among  us  as  the  Mazurka, — - 
the  old  Sclavonian  measure,  in  which  all  succeeding 


18 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


couples  have  to  imitate  the  motions  of  the  first; 
and  the  cliief  Russian  peculiarity  of  the  dance  con- 
sists still  in  the  circumstance  of  the  ladies  selecting 
their  own  partners — the  brilliant  Natalie,  we  say, 
having  twice  sportively,  or  in  a spirit  of  coquettish 
bravado,  chosen  a handsome  young  aidc-de-camp, 
whom  the  Empress  was  supposed  to  view  with 
favor,  led  to  her  abrupt  exile  from  Court,  and  to 
the  detaching  of  Captain  Vlasfief,  of  the  Imperial 
Guards,  to  irksome  and  secluded  duty  at  the  state 
prison  of  Schlusselburg.  Tliis  unmerited  affront 
filled  her  brother,  Basil  Mierowitz,  with  such  fiery 
indignation,  that  but  for  the  dread  of  compromising 
his  whole  family,  he  would  have  cast  his  commis- 
sion at  the  feet  of  the  imperious  Catharine,  and 
quitted  the  Russian  army  ; but  fiight  or  exile  must 
at  once  have  followed  the  act. 

As  it  was,  though  detached  and  distant  on  the 
Livonian  frontier,  lie  was  now  conceiving  a scheme 
for  vengeance,  much  more  perlious  to  himself  and 
to  all  concerned,  and  which  actually  aimed  at  the 
dethronement  of  the  Empress  Catharine  I 


CHAPTEK  III. 


NATALIE. 

WfHERE  are  few  Russian  ladies  noWj  who  do 
V2/  not  speak  with  equal  facility,  German, 
Erench,  and  English ; but  Natalie  Mierowna  and 
her  cousin  were  then  each  mistress  of  them  all, — 
and  this  was  in  the  comparatively  barbarous  time  of 
Catharine  II. 

Thus  their  acquaintance  with  European  literature 
enabled  them  to  excel  in  an  easy  and  well-sup- 
ported conversation  of  which  the  old  boyar,  their 
kinsman,  could  make  nothing ; and  which  they 
could  embellish  by  their  wit  and  power  of  quota- 
tion, and  with  an  exquisite  esprit  peculiarly 

their  own.  When  this  dangerous  charm  was  added 
to  the  great  beauty  of  Natalie,  she  could  not  but 
prove  a perilous  acquaintance  for  the  young  Scot- 
tish wanderer. 

Her  loveliness  was  indeed  great. 

She  was  a large,  showy,  and  snowy-skinned 
beauty,  almost  voluptuous  yet  very  graceful  in 
form,  with  fine  dark  eyes,  that  were  dreamy  or 
sparkling  by  turns  as  emotion  moved  her ; long- 
lashed  they  were,  and  perhaps  too  heavily  lidded, 

*19 


so 


TSE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Her  hair  was  of  the  darkest  brown,  almost  black ; 
her  lips  were  full,  but  flexible,  small  and  pouting 
when  in  repose,  almost  too  large  when  she  smiled, 
which  was  frequently. 

It  was  when  she  spoke  of  the  Empress,  that  her 
white  bosom  heaved,  and  a flery  expression  seemed 
to  pervade  her  whole  features.  She  said  little,  and 
that  little  was  generally  said  with  assumed  gentle- 
ness or  real  reserve,  for  language  cannot  be  too 
guarded  in  Russia ; but  her  dark  eyes  flashed,  her 
delicate  nostrils  dilated,  her  sliort  upper  lip  quiv- 
ered, she  threw  back  her  proud  head,  and  more 
than  once  Balgonie  saw  her  white  hands  clenched ; 
for  all  the  dove-like  softness  of  her  nature  seemed 
to  depart,  when  she  thought  of  the  affront  that 
exile  from  Court  had  put  upon  her,  and  her  whole 
family,  even  to  delaying  the  marriage  of  her  cousin 
Mariolizza  to  her  brother  Basil,  to  whom  she  was 
engaged — solemnly  betrothed  by  a religious  cere- 
mony. 

She  took  the  arm  of  Balgonie,  and  led  the  way  to 
the  dining-room,  which  was  lit  by  brilliant  crystal 
girandoles,  and  heated,  of  course,  by  a peitchka, 
the  greatest  luxury  of  civilized  life  that  can  be 
found  in  a cold  climate,  and  which  warms  a house 
more  effectually  than  any  grate  of  coals  can  do. 
Built  on  that  side  of  the  large,  lofty,  and  magnifi- 
cent room  which  was  farthest  from  the  windows,  it 
was  formed  of  solid  stone,  with  several  carved 


NATALIE. 


21 


apertures,  and  lined  with  white  shining  porcelain ; 
within  it,  blazed  a constant  fire  of  billets  and  fag- 
gots, under  the  care  of  the  dvornick,  or  house- 
porter,  and  these  were  furnished  by  the  Count’s 
serfs  or  woodsmen  from  the  adjacent  forests. 

All  made  a sign  of  the  cross  in  the  Greek  fashion, 
and  seated  themselves ; but  weary  and  exhausted 
by  his  long  ride  and  recent  immersion  hi  a swollen 
and  icy  river,  Balgonie  found  it  almost  impossible 
to  partake  of  the  supper  that  was  pressed  upon  him : 
caviare  on  slices  of  bread  to  begin  with, — caviare 
from  the  roe  of  the  sturgeons  of  the  Don,”  as  the 
Coimt  informed  him, — roasted  capon  and  jugged 
hare,  dried  figs  and  conserves,  prunes,  and  pastilla 
of  fruit  and  honey  compounded,  together  with  the 
champagne,  Rhine  wine,  and  vodka,  in  silver  tank- 
ards and  goblets  of  jeweled  Venetian  crystal. 

The  jaded  traveler  could  only  make  a pretence 
of  eating ; but  he  could  drink  deeply,  for  he  was 
athirst;  and  more  than  one  foaming  goblet  of 
sparkling  Moselle  was  filled  for  him,  till  he  became 
giddy  and  confused.  Were  the  fumes  of  the  wine 
mounting  to  his  head  ? What  was  the  Count  say- 
ing in  an  undertone?  Was  it  of  him  that  the 
cousins  were  talking  in  some  strange  language,  and 
covertly  exchanging  smiles  with  tlieu*  beautiful 
eyes  ? Courage,  Charlie,”  thought  he,  this  is  a 
bad  beginning  ! ” 

Though  people  were  not  very  particular  as  to  a 


22 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


bumper  more  or  less  in  those  days  anywhere,  in 
Russia  least  of  all,  an  emotion  of  shame  came  over 
the  young  Scottish  officer ; he  felt  his  cheeks  and 
forehead  burn,  and  he  made  a vigorous  effort  to 
rally  his  senses,  but  in  vain  : he  heard  the  voices  of 
Natalie  and  of  Mariolizza  ; but  he  knew  not  what 
they  said  or  what  he  replied,  for  he  felt  as  one  in  a 
half-waking  dream.  They  were  talking  merrily, 
however,  in  French,  which  is  always  spoken  well  by 
the  Russians ; perhaps,  because  the  tongue  that  can 
master  Russ  may  achieve  anything. 

After  a time  he  mastered  sufficient  energy  and 
sense  to  beg  that  he  might  be  permitted  to  retire, 
as  he  had  his  journey  to  resume  betimes  on  the 
morrow ; and  he  was  escorted  to  the  chamber  by 
the  Count  in  person.  Its  four  corners  seemed  to  be 
in  rapid  pursuit  of  each  other  now,  and  the  floor 
and  the  cealing  to  be  incessantly  changing  places ; 
then  his  senses  reeled,  and  the  light  departed  from 
his  eyes.  He  found  himself  fainting. 

The  sudden  and  rapid  journey  from  Novgorod, 
the  lack  of  food  and  the  toil  he  had  undergone  for 
one  night  and  two  entire  days,  while  wandering 
with  the  treacherous  Podatchkine,  the  crossing  of 
the  Louga,  and  the  bruises  he  had  unconsciously  re- 
ceived from  several  pieces  of  floating  ice,  had  all 
proved  too  much  for  his  system,  and  brought  on  a 
relapse  of  an  old  camp  fever  from  which  he  had 
suffered  once  when  serving  with  the  army  in 


KATALIE. 


23 


Silesia, — and  in  the  morning  he  was  delirious. 

Though  weak,  bewildered,  scared  by  the  prospect 
of  loitering  thus  when  proceeding  on  urgent  duty 
(for  obedience  and  discipline  become  a second  na- 
ture to  the  soldier),  enduring  a raging  thirst  and 
a burning  pang  that  shot  with  each  pulsation 
through  his  brain,  stiff  in  every  joint  and  covered 
with  livid  bruises,  he  had  still  strength  left  as  dawn- 
ing day  stole  through  the  double  sashes  of  his  vdn- 
dows,  to  stagger  from  bed,  and  search  for  the 
dispatch,  which,  on  the  hazard  of  his  life,  he  was 
to  place  in  the  hands  of  Bernikoff,  the  Governor  of 
Schlusselburg. 

He  hurriedly,  and  with  a tremor  that  increased, 
examined  each  of  his  pockets  in  succession,  then  his 
sabretasche,  and  lastly  the  pocket  of  the  robe-de- 
chambre ; but  the  dispatch — the  dispatch  of  the 
Empress — entrusted  to  him  as  a chosen  man  by 
Lieutenant-General  Weymarn  was  gone  ! 

Lost,  or  abstracted,  it  was  irretrievably  gone  ! 

Was  he  the  victim  of  treachery  or  of  a snare? 
Was  it  a dream  that  the  voluptuous  and  beautiful 
Natalie,  with  her  snowy  skin,  her  dreamy  eyes,  and 
her  fascinating  smile,  had  been  hovering  about  him 
— a dream  or  a reality  ? 

Alas ! he  knew  not ; for  again  the  walls  and 
windows  were  whirling  round  him  in  wild  career, 
and  he  sank  on  the  floor  insensible. 

Poor  Charlie  Balgonie  knew  not  that  the  morn- 


24 


TSE  SECRET  DlSJ^ATCH. 


ing  on  which  he  made  this  alarming  discovery  was 
that  of  the  second  day  since  his  arrival  at  the  Castle 
of  Longa. 


CHAPTEE  IV. 


CORPORAL  PODATCHKmE. 


^CAECELY  had  Charlie  Balgonie  achieved  the 
passage  of  the  Louga,  and,  in  the  dark,  forced 
his  panting  horse  up  the  wooded  bank  towards  the 
lighted  windows  of  the  castle,  then  his  guide  and 
orderly.  Corporal  Mich  ail  Podatchkine,  who,  for 
reasons  which  were  his  own,  and  which  shall  ulti- 
mately be  explained,  had  decoyed  him  many,  many 
versts  to  the  southward  of  his  proper  route  and  then 
abandoned  him,  while  he  still  cautiously  followed, 
and  watched  him  plunge  into  the  perilous  stream — 
watched  him  in  the  hope  that  he  might  perish  in 
its  icy  current  ;•  Corporal  Podatchkine,  we  say,  had 
barely  seen  the  officer’s  safety  was  certain  and  as- 
. sured,  than  he  turned  his  horse’s  head,  and  with  a 
hoarse  malediction  on  his  bearded  mouth,  rode 
away  in  an  opposite  direction. 

The  lighted  windows  of  the  Castle  of  Louga  soon 
darkened  and  vanished  in  his  rear ; the  snow-flakes 
came  thicker  and  faster  on  the  icy  blast,  whitening 
his  round  bearskin  cap  and  fur  shoubah  or  cloak, 
and  the  un trimmed  mane  of  his  shaggy  horse ; but 
with  his  long  lance  slung  behind  him,  his  knees  up 

85 


26 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


to  his  saddle-bow,  and  his  fierce,  keen  eyes  peering 
out  the  way  before  him,  the  amiable  Podatchkine, 
who,  though  a Livonian  by  birth,  had  the  honor  to 
hold  the  rank  of  corporal  in  a corps  of  Cossacks, 
rode  on  through  the  dense  fir  forest  as  unerringly 
as  if  every  tree  therein  had  been  planted  by  his 
own  warlike  hands. 

Ere  long,  with  a grunt  of  satisfaction,  he  struck 
upon  a track  that  led  to  the  right  and  left,  and  he 
unhesitatingly  pursued  the  latter.  There  were  then 
none  of  those  verst-posts,  about  ten  feet  high  or  so, 
such  as  may  now  be  found  by  the  side  of  the 
Russian  roads  through  the  forests,  or  along  the 
open  steppe;  but  Podatchkine  rode  steadily  on, 
pausing  only  now  and  then  to  unsling  and  grasp  his 
spear,  or  give  a fierce  gleaming  glance  around  him, 
while  the  nostrils  of  his  thick  snub-nose  dilated, 
when  a prolonged  and  melancholy  howl,  rising  from 
the  woody  depths  into  the  chill  drear  sky  of  night, 
announced  that  some  wolf  was  rousing  itself  in 
its  lair  among  the  grass  or  in  its  den  beside  the 
river. 

Anon,  he  came  to  a place  where  the  forest  was 
partially  cleared,  and  there  stood  a little  hut,  built 
of  squared  logs.  The  walls  of  this  edifice  were 
whitened  artificially ; but  the  roof  was  rendered 
wdiiter  still  by  a coat  of  the  fast-freezing  snow.  A 
single  ray  of  smoky  light  streamed  from  the  open- 
ing (which  passed  from  a window)  near  the  door, 


CORPOKAL  PODATCHKINE. 


27 


on  which  Podatchkine,  without  dismounting  struck 
three  blows  with  the  butt  of  his  lance. 

Nicholas  Paulovitch,”  he  exclaimed,  are  you 
within  ? ” 

The  door  was  soon  unfastened,  and  thereat  ap- 
peared a figure,  not  unlike  an  Esquimaux,  bearing 
a pine  torch.  He  was  a man  of  great  stature  and 
muscular  development,  clad  in  a caftan  of  coarse, 
thick,  and  warm  material,  girt  by  a broad  belt  in 
which  a long  rusty  knife  was  stuck ; he  had  on  bark 
shoes  and  long  leggings  of  sheepskin,  which,  like 
Bryan  O’Linn’s  breeches,  had  the  skinny  side  out 
and  the  hairy  side  in  ; ” and  he  cultivated  one  long 
lock  of  grizzled  hair  behind  his  right  ear  in  the  old 
fashion  of  the  Black  Cossacks ; but  this  appendage 
was  concealed  by  the  hood  and  tippet  of  fur  which 
he  wore.  This  man,  however,  did  not  belong  to 
any  of  the  nomadic  military  tribes,  but  was  a spe- 
cies of  Russian  gipsy,  a half  breed. 

He  held  up  the  pine  torch,  and  its  fiaring  light 
tipped  with  a lurid,  w^eird,  and  uncertain  glow  his 
fierce,  tawny,  and  repulsive  visage,  causing  his  cun- 
ning and  almond-shaped  eye  to  gleam  redly,  like 
two  carbuncles,  from  under  their  thick  and  impend- 
ing brows,  which  were  nearly  as  shaggy  as  the 
moustache  that  blended  with  his  greasy  and  un- 
combed beard ; and  in  the  same  light  the  head  of 
Podatchkine’s  lance  and  the  hafts  of  liis  sabre, 
dagger,  and  pistols  glittered  at  times,  being  the 


28 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH, 


only  bright  parts  of  his  remarkably  dingy  costume. 

Is  it  you,  Michail  Podatchkine — and  alone  f ” 
he  asked  surlily. 

^^Yes;  even  so,  alone.  Dost  think  I have  the 
evil  eye  about  me  that  you  stare  so,  Nicholas 
Paulovitch  ? ” 

God  forbid  ! ’’  replied  Nicholas  with  a shudder, 
for  this  idea  is  the  grossest  and  the  greatest  of  all 
Kussian  superstitions ; but  I expected  two — your- 
self and  another.” 

Who  told  you  so  ? ” 

Olga  Paulowna,  my  sister,  who  yesterday  saw 
you  at  Krejko.” 

True,  I remember.  Now  listen,  old  friend  and 
comrade ” 

Hush,  the  girl  is  within  and  may  hear  you.” 

“ Well,”  said  Podatchkine,  lowering  his  voice, 
while  the  other  extinguished  his  torch,  half  closed 
the  door  of  his  hut,  and  drew  nearer  the  speaker, 
by  order  of  General  Weymarn,  Governor  of  St. 
Petersburg,  General  of  the  Cavalry,  Director-Gen- 
eral of  the  Canals,  Bridges,  and  Highways ” 

And  the  devil  knows  all  what  more  ! ” said  the 
other  impatiently.  Well  ? ” 

I am  ordered  to  guide  this  Carl  Ivanovitch 
Balgonie,  who  is  a stranger,  to  the  gates  of  Schlus- 
selburg, as  he  bears  to  Bernikoff  a dispatch  of  im- 
portance ; but  I have  been  promised  a heavy  sum 


CORI»ORAL  PODATCHKINE. 


29 


Ah  ! how  much  say  you  ? ” 

I have  said  nothing 

But  you  spoke  of  a heavy  sum.’’ 

Two  hundred  silver  roubles.” 

Two  hundred  silver  roubles  ! ” exclaimed  Nicho- 
las, opening  his  avaricious  eyes  with  wonder,  and 
then  closing  them  again,  so  that  they  looked  like 
two  narrow  slits. 

‘‘  Tes,  every  denusca^  if  I,  by  fair  means  or  by 
foul,  prevent  the  delivery  of  that  paper  into  the 
hands  of  old  Bernikoff.” 

“ He  whose  dagger  tickled  the  throat  of  Peter 
III. : and  by  whom  are  you  offered  this,  friend 
Podatchkine  ? ” 

‘‘  I can  trust  you  : well,  by  the  Lieutenant  Apollo 
Usakoff.” 

“ The  grandson  of  the  Hetman  Mazeppa ! ” 

“ The  same ; and  by  Basil  Mierowitz ” 

Well,  and  what  the  devil  have  I to  do  with  all 
this  ? ” growled  the  half-breed. 

Much : fifty  roubles  will  be  yours,  Paulovitch, 
if  you  will  assist  me,”  said  Podatchkine  in  a husky 
whisper. 

“ Let  us  talk  over  this:  dismount,  and  come  in.” 

^^Nay,  there  is  Olga  Paulowna:  then  I have 
other  work  to  do ; but  give  me  a drink,  for  I am 
sorely  athirst.” 

The  other  speedily  brought  him  a painted  bowl 
full  of  foamy  quass,  which  the  Cossack  Corporal, 


30 


THE  SECSET  DiSPAtCM. 


for  SO  we  may  term  him,  drained  to  the  dregs; 
though  it  is  a liquor,  to  any  but  a Russian,  horrible 
as  the  water  of  Cocytus. 

Let  us  be  wary,  friend  Podatchkine,”  said  the 
woodman : the  knout  is  not  an  angel,  but  it 

teaches  us  to  tell  the  truth  alike  of  ourselves  and  of 
others.” 

Refreshed  by  his  bitter  draught,  the  Corporal 
shook  the  gathering  snow-flakes  from  the  sleeves  of 
his  fur  shoubah,  and  resumed  somewhat  garrul- 
ously : 

My  next  instructions  are,  that  the  dispatch, 
which  is  from  the  Empress  herself  (whom  God  and 
our  Lady  of  Kazen  long  preserve  !),  and  which  bears 
the  imperial  seal,  shall  never  be  delivered ; but 
must  be  .obtained  by  me  for  Basil  Mierowitz  and 
the  Lieutenant  TJsakoff,  now  detached  upon  the 
Livonian  frontier,  and  who  both  know  as  little  as  I 
care,  that  its  bearer  is  actually  their  own  dearest 
and  most  valued  friend  ! I misled  the  Hospodeen 
Balgonie,  lured  him  to  the  river’s  brink,  and  left  ► 
him  there,  in  the  hope  that  he  and  his  horse  might 
become  frozen  on  the  steppe  or  in  the  forest,  where 
I could  rob  him  at  ease ; but  the  man  seems 
made  of  iron,  and,  to  my  astonishment,  I saw  him 
swim  the  Louga.  I thought  all  gone,  he,  the  dis- 
patch, and  my  200  roubles,  when  he  plunged  his 
horse  into  the  river  ; but  he  stoutly  won  the  oppo- 
site bank,  and  has  made  his  way  straiglit  to  the 


CORPORAL  PODATCHKINE.  3l 

dwelling  of  Count  Mierowitz,  where  now,  I doubt 
not,  he  is  safely  housed.” 

“ It  seems  to  me,  friend  Podatchkine,  that  you 
took  a great  deal  of  useless  trouble  when  you  had 
your  dagger  and  pistols,”  said  the  other,  suspici- 
ously. 

^^Hay,  if  he  was  to  perish  thus,  suspicion  might 
too  readily  fall  upon  me ; for  he  is  a favorite  officer 
of  the  Empress,  and  of  Weymarn  too.  My  plan  is 
this:  I may  get  the  dispatch  to-night  in  yonder 
castle  of  Count  Mierowitz.” 

And  if  not  ? ” 

Then  I shall  again  lure  and  mislead  Balgonie, 
and  bring  him  here  in  the  night.” 

What  then  ? ” asked  the  woodman  doggedly. 

^^How  dull  we  are,  Paulo vitch.  We  shall  drug 
and  drown  him  ; thus  shall  he  die  without  a wound. 
I will  take  back  the  dispatch  to  Novgorod ; and 
you  can  carry  the  body  on  his  horse  to  St.  Peters- 
burg, where  a sum  will  be  given  you  for  finding  it. 
The  poor  stranger,  they  will  say,  has  perished  amid 
our  keen  Pussian  frosts,  and  that  will  be  all.  Nic- 
holas Paulo  vitch,  the  carcass  will  be  well  worth 
twenty  roubles  to  thee.” 

And  thy  fifty  ? ” 

You  shall  receive  when  the  affair  is  over,  and 
when  you  come  to  me  at  Novgorod,  where  I am 
quartered.” 

By  the  bones  of  my  tribe,  and  by  the  sword 


32 


The  secret  dispatch. 


that  flames  in  the  hand  of  the  holy  Michail,  I am 
with  you,  Podatchkine  ! ” exclaimed  the  half-breed 
with  ferocious  joy,  mingling  his  gipsy  cant  with 
that  of  the  Russiaii  church.  Then  they  shook 
heartily  their  hard  and  dingy  hands — hands  that 
had  wrought  many  a deed  of  merciless  cruelty. 

And  now,  Paulovitch,  give  me  a light  for  my 
pipe,  and  let  me  begone.” 

A few  minutes  more  and  these  worthy  compa- 
triots had  separated. 

Podatchkine  rode  somewhat  leisurely  to  a ford 
that  he  knew  of  lower  down  the  river,  believing 
that  in  time  the  whole  onus,  and  perhaps  suspicion, 
of  Balgonie’s  death  (if  it  was  necessary)  might  fall 
on  the  woodman,  whom  he  had  resolved  to  cheat  of 
the  promised  fifty  roubles  if  he  could. 

He  will  play  me  false,”  muttered  Podatchkine. 
“ Is  not  the  dog  a gipsy  ? Beware  of  the  tamed 
wolf,  of  the  baptized  Jew,  and  the  enemy  who  has 
made  it  up ; why  should  I not  delude  him  wdio  will 
readily  delude  me  ? ” 

Our  enterprising  Corporal  was  correct  in  his  esti- 
mate of  Nicholas  Paulovitch  ; for,  at  the  same  mo- 
ment, that  personage,  while  wrapped  in  his  filthy 
sheepskin  (caring  nothing  for  the  comfort  of  any 
other  bed  than  the  floor),  was  considering  how  he 
might  drug  and  drown  both  the  ofiicer  and  his 
treacherous  guide,  sell  both  their  bodies  at  the  near- 
est military  post,  and,  by  taking  the  dispatch  to 


OORPOBAL  PODATOHKIKE. 


33 


Novgorod  himself,  obtain  the  entire  reward  offered 
for  it  by  the  Lieutenants  Mierowitz  and  Usakoff,  or 
still  more,  perhaps,  by  delivering  it  to  the  Empress ! 

There  was  a third  person  who  had  overheard  the 
first  savage  plot,  and  who  felt  her  heart  stirred 
with  pity  and  terror  for  Balgonie,  who  had  given 
her  a silver  kopec  at  Krejko  but  yesterday, — the 
gipsy  girl,  Olga  Paulowna,  the  sister  of  Nicholas 
Paulovitch  ; and  she  resolved  to  baffle  both  conspir- 
ators if  she  could. 

It  was  in  perfect  ignorance  of  who  might  be  the 
bearer  of  that  dispatch  (with  the  contents  of  which 
a spy  had  acquainted  them)  that  the  two  officers, 
who  vrere  now  engaged  in  an  extensive  and  danger- 
ous political  and  military  conspiracy,  contrived  to 
have  Podatchkine,  in  the  character  of  a guide  and 
orderly,  sent  upon  the  trail  of  one  who  was  really 
their  most  valued  friend  and  comrade  ; though,  as 
a foreigner  and  soldier  of  fortune,  they  deemed  it 
proper  to  keep  him  as  yet  in  total  ignorance  of 
their  daring  hopes  and  plans. 


CHAPTER  V. 


THE  DAGGER  OF  BERNIKOFF. 

IT  may  now  be  necessary  to  afford  the  reader  a 
little  liistorical  insight  as  to  what  it  was  that 
hinged  on  this  important  dispatch  of  the  Scottish 
officer,  Balgonie. 

When  the  Emperor  Peter  II.  died  of  small-pox 
(just  on  the  eve  of  his  marriage),  closing  a short 
reign  of  three  years  of  stormy  trouble  and  dark  in- 
trigue, the  whole  male  issue  of  Peter  the  Great  of 
Russia  became  extinct. 

The  Duke  of  Holstein,  son  of  his  eldest  daugh- 
ter, was  entitled  to  the  throne ; but  the  Russians, 
for  certain  cogent  political  reasons,  filled  that  peril- 
ous seat  with  Anne,  Duchess  of  Courland,  daughter 
of  Ivan,  Peter’s  eldest  brother.  Governed  by  her 
favorite  Biron,  on  whom  she  bestowed  the  Duchy 
of  Courland,  she  broke  through  all  the  limits  which 
growing  civilization  had  imposed  upon  the  power  of 
the  Czars ; she  engaged  in  many  useless  wars,  lost 
vast  treasures  and  more  than  a hundred  thousand 
men  in  strife  with  the  Turks,  and  closing  an  in- 
glorious reign,  was  succeeded  by  one  who  will 

shortly  be  introduced  to  the  reader,  Ivan  Antono- 
’ 34 


THE  DAGGER  OF  BERNIKOFF. 


35 


vitch,  or  John  IV.,  son  of  her  niece,  the  Princess 
of  Mechlenbnrg,  an  infant  only  six  months  old. 
This  Princess  sent  Biron,  the  Bcgent  to  the  usual 
place  of  Muscovite  seclusion,  Siberia,  and  assumed 
the  administratorship  during  the  minority  of  her  son. 

This  state  of  affairs  was  but  of  short  duration 
when  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Peter  the  Great,  hav- 
ing a strong  party,  seized  the  crown,  banished  the 
entire  family  of  Mechlenbnrg,  and  deposing  the 
infant  monarch,  Ivan  IV., -confined  him  for  life  a 
prisoner  of  state  in  the  great  Castle  of  Schlussel- 
burg, where  he  had  been  for  twenty-three  years,  at 
the  period  when  our  narrative  opens. 

To  mention  him  in  conversation,  and  still  more 
to  possess  a coin  bearing  his  effigy,  incurred  the 
guilt  and  insured  the  punishment  of  treason  ! More 
than  twenty  years  after  the  deposition  of  this  tran- 
sitory emperor,  a German  tradesman,  who  had 
worked  long  as  a cabinet-maker  at  St.  Petersburg, 
went  to  Cronstadt,  intending  then  to  embark  for 
his  native  city,  Lubeck.  As  it  was  not  permitted 
to  carry  out  of  Russia  above  a certain  quantity  of 
specie,  an  officer  of  customs  asked  the  German 
“ what  he  had  with  him  ? ’’  Only  a few  roubles 
to  pay  for  my  passage,”  he  replied  ; and  on  being 
commanded  to  show  them,  one  was  discovered  hav- 
ing the  effigy  of  Ivan  IV. ! In  vain  did  the  un- 
happy  tradesman  protest  that  he  neither  knew  he 
had  such  a coin,  nor  from  whom  he  had  received  it. 


36 


THE  SECRET  BI8PATCH. 


Death  was  the  penalty ; but  his  goods  were  confis- 
cated, and  he  was  condemned  to  perpetual  imprison- 
ment in  the  mines  of  Siberia. 

The  Empress  Elizabeth  died  the  victim  of  intem- 
perance ; and  while  poor  Prince  Ivan — an  un- 
crowned emperor,  a prisoner  without  a crime — was 
left  to  pine  in  the  Castle  of  Schlusselburg,  the 
sceptre  was  given  to  the  feeble  and  dissipated  Peter 
III.,  the  husband  of  the  beautiful,  voluptuous,  and 
talented  Catharine  II.,  daughter  of  a petty  prince, 
but  descended  from  the  ancient  house  of  Servestan, 
— a woman  whom,  in  three  short  months  after  their 
coronation,  he  contrived  to  disgust  by  his  political 
innovations,  and  still  more  by  his  amatorj^  incon- 
stancy ; so  it  was  resolved  to  get  rid  of  Peter,  who 
w^as  then  in  his  thirfy-fourth  year. 

Peter  I.  had  nearly  lost  Russia  by  compelling  the 
people  to  cut  off  the  tails  of  their  coats ; and  Peter 
III.  became  equally  unpopular  by  ordering  them  to 
trim  their  vast  beards,  and  by  putting  his  troops 
in  the  Prussian  uniform.  Crowmed  heads  should 
leave  such  matters  to  tailors  and  tonsors ; but  he 
certainly  abolished  the  secret  tribunal  with  its  con- 
tingent horrors,  and  recalled  many  a poor  exile  from 
Siberia. 

A party  was  formed  for  his  dethronement:  so 
one  evening  in  July,  1762,  when  he  was  surrounded 
by  his  guard  of  Ilolsteiners,  and  amusing  himself 
with  his  flower  garden  (he  was  a great  botanist), 


THE  DAGG-EK  OF  BERNIKOFF. 


37 


and  with  some  of  his  beautiful  mistresses  at  the 
palace  of  Orienbaum, — particularly  the  Countess 
of  Woronzow,  to  whose  allurements  he  had  aband- 
oned himself, — the  exasperated  Empress  prepared  to 
strike  a final  blow  for  Russia  and  for  herself. 

Putting  on  a uniform  of  old  Russian  Guards  be- 
longing  to  her  future  favorite,  Captain  Ylasfief, 
with  the  most  coquettish  grace,  this  young  and 
beautiful,  but  in  some  respects  terrible  woman  bor- 
rowed from  the  nobles  around  her  all  the  acces- 
sories of  a complete  military  toilette : of  Basil 
MierowitZj  a hat ; of  Count  Orloff,  a scarf ; of 
Colonel  Bernikoff,  a belt ; of  some  one  else,  a sword. 
Over  all,  she  wore  the  blue  ribbon  of  the  first  order 
of  the  Empire,  which  her  impolitic  husband  had 
laid  aside  for  that  of  Prussia. 

The  drums  beat  to  arms : in  this  strange  guise 
she  showed  herself  to  the  troops,  who  were  now 
mustered  to  the  number  of  twenty  thousand  men  in 
the  great  square  of  St.  Petersburg,  where  the  sight 
of  the  uniform  of  the  old  guard,  which  had  been 
forced  to  give  place  to  Peter’s  cherished  Holstein- 
ers,  raised  bursts  of  acclamation,  quite  as  much  as 
the  appearance  of  Catharine,  who  was  then  in  the 
full  flower  of  her  robust  beauty,  perfectly  elegant 
in  figure,  and  purely  feminine  from  her  shoulders 
to  her  feet,  which  were  remarkably  handsome,  and 
of  which  she  was  very  proud.”  Her  nose  was 
aquiline,  her  eyes  blue  with  black  lashes,  and  her 


38 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH* 


hair,  a brilliant  auburn,  was  curling  on  her  shoul- 
ders. Thus,  has  an  eye-witness  described  her. 

The  regiments  began  to  file  off  against  the  Em- 
peror, and  little  knowing  the  end  of  the  expedition ; 
among  the  troops  on  this  night  marched  Charlie 
Balgonie,  with  the  colors  of  the  Regiment  of 
Smolensko  on  his  shoulder. 

Everywhere  the  rebellious  Empress  was  received 
with  enthusiasm,  and  the  Great  Chancellor  Woro- 
slaff,  who  was  sent  against  her,  was  among  the  first 
to  join  her  party. 

The  Emperor,  abandoning  his  fiowers  and  his 
fair  ones,  fied  to  his  yacht  or  galley,  which  was 
rowed  to  Cronstadt,  of  which  his  enemy,  the  High 
Admiral  Talizine,  had  already  made  himself  master. 
The  imperial  galley  (relates  M.  Rulhiere  in  his 
^^Histoire  sur  la  Revolution  de  Russie came 
under  the  ramparts  in  the  night,  while  the  great 
alarm  bells  rung,  the  drums  were  beaten  and  scarlet 
rockets  ascended  in  showers  from  the  dark  mass  of 
the  Castle  of  Kronslot ; and  then,  all  along  the  line 
of  fortifications,  Peter  saw  two  hundred  portfires 
shedding  tlieir  weird  unearthly  glare  through  the 
yawning  embrasures  upon  the  twilight  sea  and  sky 
— each  port-fire  beside  a loaded  cannon — ^loaded 
against  liimself ! 

This  was  at  ten  o’clock ; but  ere  the  great  oars  of 
the  galley  were  lain  in,  or  the  anchor  dropped,  a 
sentinel  challenged  : 


THE  DAG-GSR  OF  BERNIKOFF. 


39 


Who  comes  there  ? ” 

His  Imperial  Majesty  the  Emperor/’  replied 
the  Captain  of  the  galley,  who  was  standing  on  its 
gilded  prow. 

There  is  no  longer  any  Emperor  ! ” was  the 
stern  reply  of  some  one  on  the  ramparts. 

’Tis  false  ! I am  here — I,  Peter  Antonovitch,” 
said  the  Emperor,  growing  pale  at  these  daring  and 
terrible  words,  as  he  stood  up  and  threw  back  his 
cloak  to  show  himself  and  his  well-known  Prussian 
star,  by  the  clear,  lingering  twilight  of  the  northern 
evening. 

Steer  off,”  shouted  Admiral  Tahzine,  or,  by 
our  Lady  of  Kazen,  I will  fire  on  you  ! ” 

^^We  are  going — give  us  but  time,”  cried  the 
Captain  hopelessly,  through  his  speaking-trumpet. 

At  that  moment  a thousand  voices  on  the  ram- 
parts shouted  on  the  still  twilight  air — 

Long  live  the  Empress  Catharine  II. ! ” 

On  hearing  this,  Peter  burst  into  tears,  and  fell 
back  into  the  arms  of  his  attendants,  saying  : — 

The  conspiracy  is  general — from  the  first  days 
of  my  short  reign  I have  seen  it  coming ! ” 

He  was  soon  after  abandoned  by  all,  even  by  his 
obnoxious  Holstein  Guards,  who  surrendered  to  the 
Hegiments  of  Smolensko  and  Yalikolutz;  and  then 
he  was  committed  by  his  wife,  prisoner  of  state,  to 
the  Castle  of  Robsch,  in  a solitary  place,  eighteen 
miles  from  St,  Petersburg.  Six  days  afterwards 


40 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


had  only  elapsed,  when  it  was  suggested  that 
though  young  Ivan  was  still  lingering  a captive  at 
Schlusselburg,  and  some  were  not  without  hopes  of 
replacing  him  on  the  throne,  tranquillity  could  not 
be  perfectly  restored  while  Peter  lived,  though 
lonely  and  abandoned  now. 

His  wife’s  lovers  and  favorites  came  to  this  deci- 
sion, speedily ; so,  late  one  afternoon,  three  horse- 
men arrived  at  the  residence  of  the  fallen  Emperor. 
They  were  Count  Orloff,  v/ho  had  in  his  breast 
a laced  handkerchief  of  the  Empress,  the  grim 
Colonel  Bernikoff,  and  a Hospodeen  or  gentleman, 
wlio  announced  that  they  had  come  to  sup  witli 
him ; and,  according  to  the  Russian  fashion,  glasses 
of  brandy  were  served  round  before  they  sat  down. 

In  that  given  to  the  Emperor  was  poison. 

Whether,  adds  the  historian  we  quote,  they  were 
in  haste  to  carry  back  their  dark  tidings,  or  whether 
the  horror  of  the  deed  made  them  anxious  to  finish 
it,  none  can  know ; but  to  hasten  their  terrible 
work,  they  insisted  on  giving  him  another  glass. 

Already  the  subtle  poison  was  diffusing  itsplf 
through  the  vitals  of  the  unhappy  Emperor ; and 
now,  struck  by  the  pallor  of  their  faces  and  the  fe- 
rocious expre’ssion  of  their  eyes,  he  started  back, 
refused  the  proffered  glass,  and  despairingly  sum- 
moned assistance. 

They  tlien  flung  themselves  upon  him,  and  Count 
Orloff,  pulling  from  his  l)reast  the  handkerchief  lie 


THE  BAHHER  OF  BEBNIKOFF. 


41 


had  concealed  there,  threw  it  over  the  mouth  of 
Peter,  to  gag  him  and  stifle  his  cries.  He  was 
dashed  again  and  again  to  the  floor,  where  he  de- 
fended himself  against  his  assassins  with  all  the 
fury  that  terror  of  death  and  despair  could  inspire. 

Two  young  ofiicers  of  the  guard  now  rushed  in, 
and,  as  the  orders  of  all  were  to  slay  Peter  without 
a wound,  they  knotted  the  handkerchief  round  his 
neck  to  strangle  him,  while  the  Count  pressed  his 
knees  upon  his  breast. 

Still  the  dying  Emperor  struggled  so  fearfully 
that  the  ferocious  Bernikoff,  losing  all  patience, 
plunged  a dagger  into  his  throat;  and  thus, 
poisoned,  stabbed,  and  strangled,  he  expired  with- 
out further  resistance. 

A few  hours  after  this,  pale,  dishevelled,  and 
covered  with  blood,  dust  and  perspiration,  with  torn 
garments  and  disturbed  bearing.  Count  Orloff  ap- 
peared before  the  Empress.  She  arose  in  silence,’’ 
says  M.  Rulhiere,  and  passed  into  an  inner  room, 
whither  he  followed  her.  Some  minutes  after,  she 
called  Count  Panin,  who  was  already  named  her 
minister,  and  informed  him  that  the  Emperor  was 
dead,  and  consulted  with  him  upon  the  mode  of 
announcing  his  demise  to  the  people.” 

It  was  given  out  that  he  had  died  a natural  death. 

The  wound  inflicted  by  Bernikoff’s  dagger  was 
carefully  sewed  up ; the  orifice  was  neatly  covered 
by  a piece  of  gold-beater’s  skin  ; and  the  body,  iu 


42 


'THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


an  old  green  regimental  coat,  with  four  wax  candles 
as  a funeral  state,  was  exposed  for  three  days  to  the 
people.  The  Russians  were  permitted  to  wear 
their  beards ; the  Empress  poured  out  her  afflictions 
in  a ukase,  and  offered  up  her  prayers,  as  became  a 
widow,  in  the  church  of  our  holy  'Lady  of  Kazan. 

And  it  was  in  the  service  of  this  charming 
people, 

this  new  and  polished  nation, 

Whose  names  want  nothing  but  pronounciation,'’ 

— a people,  who,  in  the  arts  of  peace,  were  little 
better  than  the  Scots  when  James  I.  was  butchered 
in  the  Black  Friary  at  Perth,  or  the  men  of  Merry 
England  ’’  when  her  crook-backed  Dick  was  smoth- 
ering the  royal  babies  in  the  Tower — that,  by  an 
adverse  fate,  our  hero  found  himself  a soldier  of 
fortune,  when,  as  before  stated,  old  George  III. 
was  King  of  the  British  Isles,  the  first  gentleman 
in  Europe”  was  a sinless  infant  on  his  mother’s 
knee. 

After  Peter  was  laid  in  his  grave,  and  Catharine 
was  firmly  seated  on  his  throne,  her  conduct  Avas 
cautious  and  judicious,  and,  as  even  her  enemies  ad- 
mitted, at  times  magnanimous ; yet  frightful  atro- 
cities were  committed  during  her  reign,  when  she 
degenerated  into  ferocity  and  debauchery. 

The  captivity  of  the  young  and  innocent  Ivan  in 
Schlusselburg,  in  charge  of  the  unscrupulous  Ber- 
nikoff,  Captain  Vlasfief,  and  a Lieutenant  named 


THE  DAGGER  OF  BEBNIKOFF. 


43 


Tschekin — three  officers  in  whom  Catharine  had 
implicit  reliance — seemed  more  helpless  now  than 
ever  when  the  sceptre  was  in  her  firm  grasp. 

Now  that  Peter  \vas  disposed  of,  lier  only  dread 
consisted  in  the  chance  of  Ivan’s  escape ; so  his 
guards  were  doubled,  and  her  orders  to  Bernikoff 
concerning  him  were  to  ensure  his  detention  even 
by  death  if  necessary : and  it  was  concerning  this 
very  dread  that  Captain  Charles  Balgonie  was  pro- 
ceeding with  a dispatch  from  Novgorod,  where 
Catharine,  with  some  of  her  favorites  and  courtiers, 
was  residing  for  a time  in  the  ancient  palace  of  the 
Czars. 


CHAPTEE  II. 


THE  PALATINE 

I^OEPOKAL  PODATCHKINE  was  an  admir- 
^ able  specimen  of  liis  own  type  of  Eussian, — 
one  who  was  more  afraid  of  neglecting  Lent  than 
of  murdering  his  fellow-being,  especially  if  that 
fellow-being  was  a foreigner;  ^^for,”  saith  M.  L’ 
Abbe  Chappe  at  this  time,  they  do  not  reckon 
foreigners  among  the  number  of  their  brethren.” 
His  thick  black  scrubby  hair  was  cut  straight 
across  the  forehead  in  a line  wuth  the  eyebrows,  and 
at  each  side  it  hung  perpendicularly  down  below 
the  ears,  in  the  old  Eussian  and  Mediaeval  fashion, 
and  was,  moreover,  cut  square  across  the  neck  be- 
hind, just  as  the  English  wore  theirs  in  the  days  of 
Eichard  III.  ; and  he  kej)t  alternately  scratching 
and  smoothing  his  rugged  front,  nervously  and  as- 
siduously, when  he  removed  his  fur  Cossack  cap ; 
and,  full  of  affected  concern,  even  to  exhibiting 
tears  in  his  small  cunning  eyes,  presented  himself, 
through  the  bribed  auspices  of  the  dvornick,  to 
Natalie  Mierowna  next  morning,  and  besought  lier 
to  have  him  conducted  to  the  chamber  of  his 
brave,  his  beloved  Captain,  his  comrade  and  brother, 
44 


THE  PAI^TINE. 


45 


who  was,  he  now  learned,  seriously  ill,  helpless,  and 
delirious,” — and,  in  fact,  just  as  the  cunning  Cor- 
poral wished  him  to  be. 

There  he  found  Balgonie,  certainly  too  ill  and 
weak  either  to  recognize  him  or  understand  what  he 
was  about ; so  the  faithful  Cossack  made  a rapid 
and  skilful  investigation  of  all  the  oflScer’s  pockets, 
and  especially  his  sabretasche,  for  the  dispatch. 

Not  a vestige  of  it  was  to  be  found. 

What  the  devil  can  he  have  done  with  it  ? ” 
muttered  the  bewildered  Corporal,  as  he  thought  of 
his  200  silver  roubles  ; can  he  have  lost  it  in  the 
river,  or  swallowed  it  ? ” 

The  truth  is,  that  Natalie  Mierowna  had  her 
doubts  about  the  fidelity  of  Podatchkine,  and  even 
of  some  of  her  own  domestics,  and  aware  of  the  risk 
run  by  the  stranger  if  he  lost  a dispatch  of  the- Em- 
press, she  had,  prior  to  the  introduction  of  the  Cor- 
poral, secured  the  document,  and  at  that  moment  it 
was  hidden  in  her  own  fair  bosom  until  she  could 
secure  it  in  a safer  place. 

* In  her  bosom  ! Poor  Natalie ! Alas,  she  little 
knew  its  contents,  and  the  horrors  they  were  yet  to 
produce. 

Baffled  thus  in  his  attempt  to  seciire  it,  there  was 
no  resource  for  the  faithful  warrier  of  the  steppes 
now  but  to  take  up  his  quarters,  which  he  was 
nothing  loth  to  do,  at  the  Castle  of  the  Louga,  and 
there  quietly  and  comfortably  to  smoke  his  pipe  by 


46 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


the  kitchen  stove ; await  the  recovery  or  the  death, 
he  cared  not  which,  of  Balgonie;  and  to  concert 
further  measures  with  the  huge  gipsy,  Nicholas 
Paulo vitch,  whom  he  saw  daily. 

It  was  no  feverish  dream  of  Balgonie  that  Natalie 
Mierowna  had  been  hovering  about  his  bedside; 
for  she  and  her  consin  Mariolizza  had  been  his 
especial  nurses. 

In  less  than  three  days  the  feverish  delirium  sub- 
sided, sense  completely  returned,  and  the  young 
Captain  appeared  to  be  laboring  under  a species  of 
influenza.  A cold,  as  we  understand  that  homely 
but  troublesome  kind  of  ailment  in  foggy  Britain, 
is  almost  unknown  in  the  latitude  of  St.  Petersburg. 

It  is,’’  says  Dr.  Granville,  “ indigenous  to  Eng- 
land, and,  above  all,  to  London ; ” yet  we  fear  Bal- 
gonie had  a most  unromantic  and  unmistakable 
cold,  consequent  on  his  immersion  in  the  icy  Louga, 
together  with  an  aguish  shivering,  which  rendered 
the  quitting  of  his  couch,  and  betaking  himself  to 
the  saddle,  as  yet  quite  impossible. 

Balgonie  had  an  insatiable  thirst : he  had  visions 
of  iced  champagne ; but  in  lieu,  got  only  tea-punch, 
if  we  may  so  call  it — ^being  tea  in  the  fashion  still 
taken  by  the  Pussians  (who  hold  that  milk  spoils 
it),  with  a slice  of  lemon  or  preserved  fruit ; and  as 
he  got  stronger,  Katinki,  a strapping  Polish  dam- 
sel with  fine  black  eyes,  who  was  Natalie’s  particu- 
lar follower,  added  thereto  a dash  of  rum  and  then 


• THE  PALATIJNE. 


47 


ts'cetochny^  or  flowery  tea,  with  cakes,  which  the 
Captain  seemed  to  relish  all  the  more  when  he 
understood  them  to  be  made  by  the  white  hands  of 
Natalie : an  appreciation  which  showed  a decided 
improvement  in  the  young  officer’s  health.  But — 
‘‘  My  dispatch,”  he  frequently  said  aloud,— ^ I 
must  begone  with  my  dispatch ! ” 

Might  it  not  be  entrusted  to  the  Corporal 
Podatchkine  ? ” asked  Natalie  one  morning,  as  she 
personally  gave  him  his  warm  and  soothing  drink 
with  her  own  hand,  Katinka  standing  demurely  by 
with  a silver  salver. 

‘‘  Impossible,  Hosphoza,  for  so  I may  call  you ; 
an  officer  alone  can  carry  a dispatch  of  the  Empress. 
Its  contents  are  most  urgent : this  delay,  over 
which  I have  no  control,  may  be  visited  by  royal 
disfavor,  even  punishment ; and  I fear  that  the  air 
of  Tobolsk  or  Irkutsk  would  ill  suit  a Scotsman’s 
lungs,  Natalie  Mierowna.’! 

^^Yet  tarry  here  you  must,”  said  she,  with  a 
smile,  the  beauty  of  wEich  proved  very  bewildering : 
“ the  Longa  is  coated  with  ice  this  morning,  but 
not  so  thick,  however,  that  it  might  not  be  broken  by 
throwing  a five-kopec  piece  from  here ; but  to 
travel  yet  would  only  kill  you,  Carl  Ivanovitch,  and 
cannot  be  thought  of  just  now.” 

Then  as  she  glided  away,  with  her  beaming  smile, 
her  white  hands  and  taper  arms,  her  rustling  dress 
of  scarlet  silk  trimmed  with  snowy  miniver,  and 


48 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


all  the  sense  of  perfume  that  pervaded  her,  Bal- 
goiiie  sighed  wearily  yet  pleasantly,  and  half 
thought  that  beautiful  figure  a dream,  as  he  turned 
on  his  soft  and  luxurious  pillow,  and  marvelled 
whether  his  past  or  his  present  existence  was  the 
real  one. 

A captain  in  the  ducal  Regiment  of  Smolensko, 
and  not  yet  twenty-five ! Some  ten  years  ago,  his 
future  seemed  to  point  to  a very  different  course  of 
life. 

Far  from  Russian  steppesi  and  icy  streams,  their 
forests  and  barbarity,  his  mind  had  been  wandering 
home  to  Britain’s  happier  shore ; and  he  might 
have  said  with  the  Bard  who  sang  the  Course  of 
Time,” — 

Nor  do  I of  that  Isle  remember  aught, 

Of  prospect  more  sublime  and  beautiful. 

Than  Scotia's  northern  battlement  of  hills, 

Which  first  I from  my  father’s  house  beheld. 

At  dawn  of  life  ; beloved  in  memory  still, 

And  standard  yet  of  rural  imagery.” 

His  story  is  a brief  one,  and  not  very  startling, 
save  for  its  rapid  career  of  injustice. 

Charles  Balgonie,  son  of  John  Balgonie  of  that 
Ilk  in  Strathearn,  had  come  into  the  world  during 
that  wRich  was  perhaps  the  most  stupid,  lifeless,  and 
impoverished  era  of  Scottish  existence,  the  middle 
of  the  reign  of  George  II. ; when  the  country  was 
without  trade,  energy,  or  enterprise,  and  when  noth- 
ing fiourished  save  that  which  prospers  there  more 


THI5  PALA.TIKE. 


49 


than  ever  even  under  the  rule  of  her  present  Ma- 
jesty, and  will  do  so  apparently  unto  the  end  of 
time, — gloomy  fanaticism  and  canting  hypocrisy: 
more  among  the  laity  certainly,  who  make  a trade 
and  cloak  of  outward  religion,  than  among  the 
clergy,  who  dare  not  be  liberal,  even  if  so  disposed; 
for  without  a public  and  noisy  exhibition  of  sanctity, 
few  have  ever  had  much  chance  of  place  or  profit 
north  of  the  Tweed. 

Moreover,  Charlie  was  born  at  a time  when  to  be 
a Scotsman  or  an  Irishman  was  almost  a political 
crime  in  the  eyes  of  their  somewhat  illiberal  fellow- 
subjects,  and  when  for  either  to  attain  eminence  in 
the  service  of  their  native  country  was  nearly  an  im- 
possibility; and  hence  the  Scots  crowded  to  the 
armies  and  fleets  of  Russia  and  Holland,  and  the 
Irish  to  those  of  Fance  and  Spain. 

By  the  early  death  of  his  parents,  Charlie  had 
been  cast,  in  his  extreme  boyhood,  upon  the  tender 
mercies  of  a bachelor  uncle,  Mr.  Gamaliel  Bab 
gonie,  a hard-hearted,  grasping  and  avaricious  mer- 
chant in  Dundee — one  who  was  a noisy  exhibitor  of 
religion,  a fervent  expounder  of  crooked  texts,  and, 
of  course,  and  Elder  of  the  Kirk ; a great  quoter  of 
Scripture  upon  unnecessary  occasions ; one  who  al- 
ways wore  garments  of  sad-coloured  broad  cloth, 
with  a spotless  white  cravat,  and  whose  quavering 
voice  and  meek  but  cunning  eyes  were  frequently 
uplifted  against  the  enormities,  the  wickedness,  and 


50 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


the  temptawtions  and  tribulawtions  of  this  weary 
world ; ’’  and  who  was,  moreover,  a vehement  des- 
piser  of  that  which  he  stigmatized  as  ‘^its  wretched 
dross,’’  but  which  he  left  no  means,  fair  or  foul,  un- 
tried to  acquire. 

In  the  lovely  vale  of  Strathearn — one  of  the 
most  exquisite  tracts  of  verdant  scenery  in  Scotland 
— stood  the  home  of  Charlie  Balgonie.  In  his  de- 
lirium, the  present  had  fled,  and  the  past  returned. 
He  had  been  a boy  again  at  his  father’s  knee — a 
child  with  his  curly  head  nestling  on  his  smiling 
mother’s  breast;  again,  in  fancy,  had  her  kisses 
rested  on  his  cheek,  and  her  soft  voice  lingered  lov- 
ingly in  his  ear ; again  had  he  felt  all  that  happi- 
ness, perfect  trust,  and  security  which  the  boy  feels 
by  his  father’s  hearth,  and  the  man,  in  after  life, 
never  more ! 

He  heard  not  the  hoarse  Louga  crashing  down  its 
ice-blocks  to  the  Baltic  Sea ; but  the  gentle  mur- 
mur of  the  Earn,  flowing  from  the  wooded  hills  of 
Comrie  towards  the  broad  blue  bosom  of  the  Tay 
— the  Earn,  where  many  a time  and  oft  he  had 
lured  the  brown  trout  and  the  speckled  salmon  from 
the  deep,  dark  pools,  near  the  old  battle-cross  of 
Dupplin  and  the  Birks  of  Invermay.  Again  he  had 
heard  the  leaves  rustle  pleasantly  in  the  summer 
woods,  where  he  had  nutted  and  birdnested  when  a 
boy ; and  he  had  seen,  in  a vivid  dream,  his  glori- 
ous native  valley  where  it  narrows  at  Dunira  ; and 


THE  PALATmE. 


51 


far  beyond,  the  blue  ridges  of  the  mighty  Gram- 
pians, lifting  their  summits,  alp  on  alp,  to  the 
clouds,  eternal  and  unchanged  as  when  the  foiled 
legions  of  Julius  Agricola  fled  along  their  slopes  in 
rout  and  disorder. 

On  the  death  of  his  parents  his  small  paternal 
estate  of  a few  hundreds  per  annum  would  have  be- 
come, as  all  might  have  supposed,  his  inheritance ; 
but  the  relation  before  mentioned — the  paternal 
uncle,  Gamaliel,  a man  of  the  strictest  probity,  and 
of  that  which  was  equally  valued  in  Scotland,  ex- 
treme sanctimony  ; one  who,  on  the  funeral  day, 
had  shed  abundance  of  tears  at  the  uncertainty  of 
life,  and  had  excelled  even  the  minister  in  prayer 
and  in  warsling  wi’  the  diel  ” {i.  e.,  wrestling  with 
Satan) — suddenly  produced  a will,  by  which,  to  the 
profound  astonishment  of  all,  the  entire  estate  was 
left  to  him  as  a return  for  certain  loans  and  sums 
advanced  to  the  deceased,  of  which,  however,  no 
proof  could  be  found ; but  it  was  a veritable  death- 
bed will,  written  accm^afcely  by  a notary,  and  duly 
signetted  with  the  autograph  of  John  Balgonie  of 
yt  Ilk.’’ 

Though  tremulous  and  shaky, — strangely  so, — 
and  rather  unlike  the  usual  signature  of  the  de- 
cesased  laird,  three  men  there  were,  accounted  good, 
worthy,  and  religious  men,  who  solemnly  deposed 
to  having  seen  the  hand  of  the  dead  man  pen  those 
four  words.” 


52  • THE  SECRET  3DISPATCH. 

It  was  a case  which  made  some  noise  in  those 
days,  because  thirty-six  hours  after  the  alleged  sig- 
nature was  given  John  Balgonie  died^ 

The  law  of  Scotland  requires  that,  after  framing 
and  signing  such  a deed,  the  testator  must  have 
been  able  to  go  once  at  least  to  church  or  market. 
How  it  came  to  pass  we  know  not  now,  but  the  dis- 
pute, though  without  a basis,  was  brought  before 
the  Supreme  Court  by  some  friends  of  the  orphan, 
for  there  were  not  a few  persons  in  Strathearn  who 
alleged  that  John  Balgonie’s  hand  had  certainly 
traced  the  signature  which  was  sworn  to  so  solemn- 
ly as  his, — but  had  done  so  after  death ; the  pen 
being  placed  in  the  fingers  of  the  corpse,  which 
were  guided  by  those  of  the  pious  and  worthy 
merchant  of  Dundee,  who  wanted  his  nephew’s 
little  patrimony  in  aid  of  certain  speculations  of  his 
own. 

Pending  a decision,  the  bereaved  boy  was  re- 
moved to  the  busy  town  on  Tay  side,  and  was  left 
to  solace^  his  sorrows  at  school,  prior,  as  he  sup- 
posed, to  becoming  a drudge  in  his  affectionate 
uncle’s  counting-house,  when  the  last  of  his  slender 
inheritance  had  been  frittered  away  in  the  fangs  of 
the  law. 

One  day — poor  Charlie  never  forgot  it — his 
worthy  Uncle  Gam  returned  from  Edinburgh  by 
the  packet.  The  case  had  been  decided  against  him, 
and  the  Court  was  about  to  name  trustees  to  look 


THE  PALATINE. 


53 


after  the  estate  of  the  orphan  boy : so  that  boy 
learned  long  after.  Mr.  Gamaliel  Balgonie  was 
unusually  grave,  stern,  and  abstracted ; but  he  de- 
liberately seated  himself  at  his  desk,  and  while 
hamming,  as  was  his  wont,  a verse  of  a psalm,  he 
penned  a letter  addressed  to  the  captain  of  a vessel 
then  lying  in  harbor,  and  gave  it  to  his  nephew 
for  immediate  delivery,  desiring  him  to  wait  for  the 
answer. 

Charlie  remarked  that  Uncle  Gam  did  not,  ac- 
cording to  his  usual  careful  custom  keep  any  copy 
of  this  letter ; and  that  it  was  written  in  a hand  so 
unlike  his  usual  penmanship  as  to  be  completely 
disguised. 

The  boy,  then  in  his  fifteenth  year,  started  on  his 
errand  with  alacrity.  It  was  better  to  be  out  amid 
the  bustle  of  the  sunlighted  quays,  than  drudging 
with  a quill  in  the  sombre  merchant’s  office  in  a 
narrow  gloomy  alley  of  Dundee.  He  soon  found 
the  ship,  which  was  moored  at  some  distance  from 
the  shore,  with  her  fore-topsails  loose,  and  blue- 
peter  flying  at  the  fore,  to  indicate  that  she  was 
ready  for  sea ; yet  Charlie  had  no  suspicion  of  the 
trap  into  wMch  he  was  running,  or  the  cruel  fate 
that  awaited  him. 

The  skipper,  a rough,  surly,  and  brutal-looking 
man,  eyed  the  boy  keenly,  while  tearing  the  letter 
into  minute  fragments,  after  he  had  perused  it,  with 
a grim  smile  of  satisfaction.  He  then  went  to  a 


54 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


locker,  where  he  poured  out  a glass  of  something 
that  seemed  to  be  port-wine. 

Drink  that,  my  lad,”  said  he,  while  I write 
an  answer  to  your  uncle.” 

Charlie,  half  afraid  to  refuse,  though  the  skip- 
per’s bearing  began  to  inspire  him  with  distrust, 
drained  the  glass;  but  scarcely  had  he  done  so 
when  the  cabin  seemed  to  be  whirling  round  him ; 
he  thought  that  he  was  becoming  sea-sick,  and  was 
in  the  act  of  staggering  towards  the  cabin  stairs, 
when  he  was  felled  to  the  floor  by  a blow  from  the 
skipper’s  heavy  hand — a blow  dealt  cruelly  and  un- 
sparingly„ 

He  recovered  consciousness  some  time  after,  to 
And  himself — stiff,  sore,  and  bloody,  from  a wound 
in  the  temple — lying  on  deck  in  the  moonlight,  with 
some  twenty-flve  other  boys,  several  of  whom  were 
still  in  the  same  state  of  stupor  or  intoxication  in 
which  they  had  been  brought  on  board.  Others 
were  loudly  lamenting  their  parents  and  brothers 
or  sisters  they  never  more  would  see,  and  all  were 
more  or  less  covered  with  blows  and  bruises,  To 
his  horror  and  dismay,  Charlie  now  found  that  the 
ship  was  at  sea,  and  running  between  the  dangerous 
reef  known  as  the  Bell  Rock  and  the  flat  sandy 
shore  of  Barrie ; and  that,  through  the  machinations 
of  Uncle  Gamaliel,  he  had  been  lured  in  to  the  hands 
of  one  of  the  most  notorious  plantation-crimps  tliat 
ever  infested  the  Scottish  coast — Captain  Zachariah 


THE  PALATINE. 


55 


Coffin,  of  New  England,  whose  craft,  a Palatine  ship, 
the  Piscatona^  was  a letter  of  marque,  carrying 
twelve  six-pounders  and  fighting  her  own  way. 

Many  miserable  little  fellows  who  had  been  lured 
to  a certain  den  im  Aberdeen,  and  there  drugged, 
robbed,  and  manacled,  were  brought  on  board  the 
Palatine  ship  as  she  lay  off  Girdleness  and  burned 
three  red  lights,  in  the  night,  as  a private  and  con- 
certed signal  with  the  crimps  ashore : and  some  of 
these  same  crimps  were  discovered,  in  after  years, 
to  have  actually  been  the  magistrates  of  the  city ! 

After  this,  the  Piscotana  was  hauled  up,  in  order 
to  go  north  about  by  Cape  Wrath,  having  on  board 
nearly  fifty  boys,  who  were  to  be  sold  as  slaves  to 
the  highest  bidder  in  Virginia ; for  nowhere  was 
the  infamous  crime  of  kidnapping  carried  to  a 
greater  excess,  even  during  the  early  years  of 
George  the  Third’s  reign,  than  in  the  neighborhood 
of  the  Granite  City — where,  in  some  instances, 
whole  families  disappeared,  and  their  horror-strick- 
en and  bewildered  parents  died  broken-hearted  and 
insane. 

Among  the  little  Palatines — a name  given  by 
Americans  to  individuals  who  were  thus  kidnapped 
— some  there  were  who  pined  and  wept  for  home ; 
and  some  who  built  castles  in  the  air,  and  looked  to 
America  as  a land  of  promise.  Others  there  were 
who  schemed  out  vengeance,  and  were  sullen.  Among 
the  latter  was  our  hero,  who  hoped  yet  to  repay  his 


56 


thk  secret  dispatch* 


wrongs  on  Uncle  Gam,  but  meanwhile  was  knocked 
about  mercilessly  by  the  sullen  shipper,  and  was  so 
repeatedly  rope’s-ended  by  him,  that  he  was  often  a 
mass  of  blood  and  bruises ; and  then,  like  a poor 
little  victim,  as  lie  certainly  was,  Charlie  would 
creep  away  into  a corner,  or  skulk  between  the  lee, 
carronades,  where  the  salt  spray  flew  over  him,  and 
mingled  with  the  tear^  he  wept  so  unavailingly,  for 
those  once  tender  and  affectionate  parents  who  were 
lying  side  by  side  in  their  graves,  in  sunny  Strath- 
earn,  far,  far  away. 

Many  times,  after  being  beaten  cruelly,  he  was 
deprived  of  food  for  hours  and  put  in  the  bilboes- 
where  the  captain  amused  himself  by  hunting  a 
savage  dog  upon  him. 

But  his  time  of  vengeance  was  coming ! 

Storms  came  on  when  the  Piscatona  entered  the 
Pentland  Firth  ; and  four  days  after  Dunnet  Head 
with  its  flinty  brow,  four  hundred  feet  in  height, 
had  vanished  into  the  wrack  and  mist  astern,  a sud 
den  cry  of  Are  caused  every  heart  to  thrill  on  board 
the  lawless  vessel. 

Whether  an  act  of  treachery  or  not,  it  was  im- 
possible to  ascertain ; but  it  had  broken  out  near 
the  ship’s  magazine,  to  which  it  communicated  with 
frightful  rapidity ; for  suddenly,  while  the  crew 
were  all  running  fore  and  aft  with  buckets,  a 
dreadful  explosion  seemed  to  rend  the  Piscatona  in 
two.  Half  of  the  main-deck  was  blown  away  with 


THE  PALATINE. 


57 


two  of  the  boats.  A whirl-wind  of  fragments  flew 
in  every  direction ; and  then  the  flames  shot  into 
the  air  in  scorching  volumes,  which  soon  set  the 
courses  and  top-gallant  sails  on  fire. 

Discipline,  or  such  a system  of  it  as  Zachariah 
Coffin  maintained  on  board,  was  totally  at  an  end. 
Some  of  the  crew  lowered  the  only  remaining  boat, 
and  fought  like  wild  beasts  for  possession  of  it, 
knocking  each  other  into  the  water  without  mercy. 
Captain  Coffin  cocked  his  pistols  at  the  gangway, 
shot  one  man  dead,  and  swore  with  a dreadful  oath 
that  he  would  kill  the  next  who  dared  to  precede 
him;  but  he  was  struck  from  behind  by  an  iron 
marline-spike,  and  falling,  together  with  his  savage 
dog,  into  the  flaming  gulf  that  yawned  amidships, 
was  seen  no  more. 

Some  of  the  crew  ultimately  pushed  off  in  the 
boat ; others  sprang  overboard  and  held  on  to  spars 
and  booms.  But  these  and  nearly  all  the  little  Pala- 
tines perished  miserably,  after  being  half  scorched. 
Some  were  crushed  to  death  by  the  falling  yards 
and  masts.  Manj^-  held  on  to  the  fore  and  main 
chains,  till  these  became  so  unbearably  hot,  that 
they  liad  to  drop  off,  with  screams  of  despair — when 
they  sank,  faint,  w^eary,  and  helpless,  to  the  bottom 
at  last. 

How  it  all  happened  Charlie  Balgonie  never 
knew.  But  hours  after  the  whole  affair  was  over, 
and  the  detested  Piscatona  had  burned  down  to  her 


58 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


water-line  and  sunk,  leaving  all  the  sea  around  her 
discolored  and  covered  with  floating  pieces  of 
charred  wood  and  the  buoyant  parts  of  her  cargo, 
he  found  himself  adrift  in  the  wide  and  stormy 
Pentland  Firth ; but  wedged  with  comparative 
safety  in  a large  fragment  of  the  fore-top,  to  which, 
the  yard  being  still  attached  by  the  sling,  a certain 
amount  of  steadiness  was  given;  yet  his  heart 
leaped  painfully,  each  time,  when  the  fragment  of 
wreck  rose  on  the  summit  of  a green  glassy  wave, 
or  went  sm’ging  down  into  the  dark  and  watery 
trough  between. 

To  add  to  the  terrors  of  his  lonely  situation,  the 
sun  had  sunk  amid  gloomy  purple  clouds,  and  a 
rainy  night  was  drawing  on.  Half  drowned,  per- 
haps, the  poor  boy  soon  became  faint  and  exhausted, 
and  would  seem  to  have  dropped  into  a species  of 
stupor ; for  when  roused  by  the  sound  of  strange 
voices,  he  found  himself  close  by  a great  and  tow- 
ering ship,  which  lay  to,  now  right  in  the  wind’s 
eye  with  her  main-yard  aback,  and  her  gunports 
I and  hammock  nettings  full  of  weatherbeaten  faces, 
gazing  at  him  with  eagerness  and  curiosity  in  the 
twilight,  while  a boat  was  lowered  from  the  davits 
and  pulled  steadily  towards  him  by  six  sailors  clad 
in  dark  green. 

She  proved  to  be  a Russian  50-gun  ship,  the  Anne 
Ivanowna^  commanded  by  Thomas  Mackenzie,  one 
of  the  many  Scottish  admirals  who  have  bravely 


THE  PALATINE. 


59 


carried  the  Russian  flag  in  the  Baltic  and  the  Black 
Sea,  the  same  officer  who  a few  years  after  was  to 
build  the  great  harbor  and  forts  of  Sebastopol,  at 
the  little  Tartar  village  then  known  as  Actiare. 

His  youthful  countryman  became  protege. 

The  worthy  admiral  sought  to  made  a sailor  of 
the  rescued  Palatine ; but  the  latter  had  seen  quite 
enough  of  the  sea  wffiile  on  board  the  Piscatona^ 
and  while  he  was  clinging  like  a limpet  or  barnacle 
to  the  piece  of  drifting  wreck ; so  he  became  a 
soldier,  and  served  under  General  Ochterlony,  of 
Guynd,  in  the  Regiment  of  Smolensko,  where,  as  a 
cadet,  his  superior  smartness,  intelligence  and  edu- 
cation, not  less  than  his  courage,  soon  distinguished 
him  among  his  thick-pated  Russian  comrades : 
thus,  in  less  than  ten  years,  he  became,  as  we  And 
him.  Captain  Carl  Ivanovitch  Balgonie,  the  most 
trusted  aide-de-camp  of  Lieutenant-General  Wey- 
marn,  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  City  and  Dis- 
trict of  St.  Petersburg. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


THE  SOLDIER  OF  THE  CZARINA. 

can  never  know,  Ivanovitcb  Balgonie, 
bow  much  I pitied  yon — ’’ 

“ You  lady  ? ’’  was  tbe  joyous  repose. 

“ That  is,  I and  Mariolizza,’’  said  Natalie 
Mierowna,  slightly  blusbing  (tbe  Russians  always 
speak  thus,  putting  the  personal  pronoun  rirst), 
wlien  we  found  you  sunk  on  a fever  bed,  in  a 
foreign  land,  so  far  from  your  country,  your  friends, 
your  mother,  perhaps ; for  you  are  young  enough, 
I think,  to  miss  her  still,  at  such  a time,  although  a 
soldier.’’ 

“ Far  indeed,  in  many  ways  ! ” replied  Balgonie, 
with  a bitter  smile,  as  he  thought  of  Uncle  Gam 
and  the  Palatine  ship ; or  perhaps  it  was  illness  that 
had  weakened  him.  I have  a country  to  which, 
more  than  probable,  I shall  never  return;  but 
father,  mother,  or  friends,  I have  none  there : all 
who  loved  me  once,  have  gone  to  the  silent  grave 
before  me.” 

Yes,  lady.” 

But  you  are  making  manv  friends  in  Russia, 
60 


THE  SOLDIER  OF  THE  CZARINA. 


61 


said  Mariolizza,  cheerfully  : there  are  my  cousin 

Basil  Mierowitz,  and  my  brother  Apollo  Usakoff, 
who  both,  I know,  love  you  a^  a brother.” 

True  ; and  most  grateful  am  I to  them  for  their 
regard,  for  both  are  polished  gentlemen.  I have 
old  General  Weymarn,  too,  though  I know  not 
what  he  will  think  of  this  delay  in  delivering  the 
Imperial  dispatch.” 

Alas,  that  most  tiresome  dispatch  ! ” exclaimed 
Natalie  ; but  I forget,”  she  added,  with  a curl  of 
her  short  upper  lip,  those  who  proceed  on  the 
errands  of  the  Empress  Catharine,  would  need  seven- 
league  boots,  or  the  carpet  of  the  prince  in  the 
fairy  tale,  which  transported  the  owner  at  a wish.” 
‘^Hush,  cousin,”  said  Mariolizza,  glancing  timidly 
round : but  no  one  was  near  save  Corporal  Fodatch- 
kine,  who  was  stolidly  smoking  a huge  pipe  at  a 
little  distance  on  the  terrace,  when  this  conversation 
took  place  two  days  after  Balgonie  became  con- 
valescent, and  fully  a week  since  the  night  of  peril 
on  which  he  swam  the  Louga. 

I cannot  describe  to  you,  ladies,  the  relief  that 
came  to  my  mind  on  discovering  that  it  had  neither 
been  lost  nor  stolen,  but  was  safe—” 

In  Natalie’s  bosom  ! ” said  Mariolizza,  laugh- 
ing. 

Certainly  the  last  place,  where,  for  her  own 
sake,  I would  place  a dispatch  of  the  widow  of 
Peter  III.,”  responded  the  other,  haughtily;  but 


62 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Balgonie  felt  his  heart  beat  quicker  as  she  spoke. 
Her  voice  was  sweet  and  lo\v,  and  had  a wonderful 
chord  in  it. 

The  day  was  mild  and  beautiful,  and  truly  an 
April  one.  The  last  of  the  ice  had  disappeared 
from  the  river ; not  a flake  of  snow  was  visible 
among  the  woods  or  on  the  distant  hills;  and  the 
bright  sun  of  noon  shone  clearly  and  brilliantly 
from  a deep-blue  sky  flecked  by  floating  masses  of 
white  cloud,  and  cast  across  the  bosom  of  the  Louga 
the  shadows  of  the  great  flr  trees  that  spread  like 
a sea  of  solemn  cones  for  miles  along  its  banks ; and 
amid  that  woody  sea,  the  most  stricking  feature 
was  a white-walled  monastery  with  its  ^^golden- 
headed  church  ” and  all  its  metal  cupolas  glittering 
in  the  sunshine. 

As  they  promenaded  on  the  gravelled  terrace 
that  lay  before  the  Court’s  residence,  Balgonie 
could  see  the  domains  of  Mierowitz  that  lay  for 
miles  around  : the  patrimonial  village  of  the  Count, 
nestling  among  the  coppice,  containing  a dozen  or 
so  of  stone  houses,  and  double  that  number  of  quaint 
tumble-down  edifices  of  W’^ood,  and  a church  with 
a little  gilt  cupola,where  his  surfs  said  them  prayers, 
and  thanked  God  and  him  for  permission  to  live 
and  breathe,  and  to  hoard  their  roubles  in  secret — 
for  wealth  in  a serf  was  a sure  source  of  misery,  ex- 
tortion, and  perhaps  of  torture,  if  discovered. 

In  the  immediate  foreground  were  wharves,  where 


THE  SOLDIER  OF  THE  CZARIKA. 


63 


the  wood  for  masts  and  spars  from  his  forests  were 
launched,  and  formed  into  great  rafts  for  conveyance 
to  the  Gulf  of  Finland.  The  din  of  axes  and  the 
crash  of  falling  timber,  with  the  cheerful  voice  of  the 
woodmen  and  labourers,  were  heard  rising  from  the 
echoing  woods,  as  they  lopped  and  trimmed  the 
giant  pines  for  conveyance  to  the  Baltic  coast;  for 
his  forest  trees  were  one  of  the  chief  sources  of 
revenue  to  Count  Mierowitz. 

^^Tour  father’s  mansion  is  indeed  a noble  one!” 
said  Balgonie,  Avho  after  surveying  the  landscape 
from  the  terrace,  ran  his  eyes  over  the  facade  of 
the  castle,  as  it  was  named,  though  by  no  means  so 
well  fortified  as  his  patrimonial  tower  in  Strathearn, 
which  dated  from  the  days  of  the  Sixth  James. 

So  noble  that  the  first  Count  of  our  name  who 
built  it,  when  Ivan  Basilovitch — Ivan  the  Terrible 
— was  Czar,  put  out  the  eyes  of  the  architect,  who 
was,  of  course,  one  of  his  serfs,”  said  Natalie. 

For  what  reason  ?”  asked  Balgonie,  starting. 

‘‘  Lest  he  should  repeat  the  work  for  another,” 
replied  Natalie;  but  then  the  Count  was  a fierce 
soldier,  who  had  served  under  Yermack  in  the  con- 
quest of  Siberia.  I fear  you  think  us  very  barbar- 
ous, Captain  Balgonie ; but  I can  assure  you,  that 
even  in  the  remote  forests  of  Yakoutsk,  on  the  banks 
of  the  Lena,  there  is  more  regard  for  human  life 
and  divine  laws  now,  than  existed  when  my  father 
was  a boy.  He  has,  indeed,  seen  terrible  things ! ” 


64 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Balgonie  did  not  see  much  of  the  Count,  who 
was  generally  occupied  among  his  people,  to  whom 
he  was  alternately  a source  of  reverence  and  of  ter- 
ror. 

Though  infinitely  more  civilised  than  the  old 
Russian  noble  as  described  by  Clark,  unw^ashed, 
unshaven,  eating  raw  turnip  and  drinking  quass,’’ 
(for  according  to  the  Doctor,  in  1799,  ‘^raw  turnips 
were  handed  about  in  slices  in  the  first  houses,  on  a 
silver  salver,  with  brandy  as  a wdiet  before  dinner,”) 
he  was  a fair  average  specimen  of  a fine  old  Musco- 
vite gentleman  all  of  the  olden  time,”  who  had  a 
cat-o’-nine-tails  always  at  hand;  who  generally  un- 
bottoned  his  vest  when  the  gold  cup  was  brought, 
in  which  he  drank  his  pink  champagne  or  rare 
Hungarian  wine,  which  he  always  had  in  equal 
plenty  with  his  fiery  vodka  and  bitter  quass ; who 
reckoned  his  silver  roubles  by  sacksful,  and  his 
Sclavonian  souls  by  thousands ; and  who,  though  by 
no  means  a bad  fellow,  as  his  imperious  and  outrage- 
ous class  go  in  Russia,  had  still  the  somewhat 
czarish  notion,  that  true  nobility  means  the  privi- 
lege of  being  treated  like  a human  being  of  intelli- 
gence and  feeling,  and  of  treating  others  as  if  they 
were  nothing  of  the  kind.” 

Scandal  said  that  in  his  wild  youth  he  had  fiogged 
his  serfs  to  fight  with  his  favorite  bear,  and  fiogged 
them  again  if  they  maltreated  or  bit  Bruin  too 
much : Balgonie  certainly  saw  two  or  three  old  serfs 


THE  SOLDIER  OF  THE  CZARINA. 


65 


who  had  lost  an  ear  in  these  combats.  And  when 
the  Count  took  his  afternoon  nap,  if  a cock  crowed  ^ 
in  the  village,  a dog  barked,  or  a cat  mewed,  the 
whole  community  were  in  trouble,  when  the  stout 
dvornick,  or  house-porter,  was  seen  to  issue  forth 
with  his  cat-o’-nine-tails  in  search  of  the  proprietor. 

A rich  sash  usually  girt  the  waist  of  his  oldfash- 
ioned  tunic,  which  was  of  fine  cloth,  and  trimmed 
with  fur,  broad  or  narrow  according  to  the  season ; 
a square  cap  of  crimson  velvet,  tasselled  with  gold 
and  edged  with  ermine  as  white  as  his  beard,  was 
placed  diagonally  on  his  head,Vhen  he  went  abroad ; 
and  then  he  carried  a long  gold-headed  cane,  with 
the  exact  weight  of  which  most  of  the  shoulders  of 
the  neighborhood  were  perfectly  familiar.  On  holy 
festivals  the  breast  of  his  best  velvet  coat  was  al- 
ways covered  by  orders  of  the  empire ; a dozen  of 
servants  usually  hovered  about  him  when  he  dined ; 
and  he  always  went  to  church  and  confession  in  a 
clumsy  old  coach  drawn  by  six  white  horses,  three 
abreast,  in  honour  of  the  Holy  Trinity. 

He  was  proud  of  being  one  of  the  old  hereditary 
nobles,  who  are  distinguished  from  the  personal 
nobility  by  their  right  to  possess  serfs,  and  to  whose 
earthly  tyranny  there  was  no  limit,  save  the  tomb. 
All  the  wretched  serf  possesses,  even  his  wife,  was 
the  property  of  his  lord.  Fear,  of  secret  murder 
alone  protected  the  latter  species  of  property; 
hence,  no  wonder  it  is  that  the  land  is  without  a 


66 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


middle  class.  Even  in  the  present  century,  Heber, 
in  his  Journal,  mentions  an  instance  of  a Russian 
noble  who,  in  his  profane  cruelty  and  lust  of  power, 
nailed  a servant  on  a cross,  for  which  he  was  only 
imprisoned  in  a monastery. 

But  in  the  character  of  Count  Mierowitz,  there 
was  something  of  the  rough  and  hardy  country  gen- 
tleman. He  it  was  who  caught  with  his  own  hands, 
and  in  his  own  forests  by  the  Louga,  the  famous 
team  of  brown  bears  which,  in  the  marriage  pro- 
cession of  the  late  Empress  Elizabeth’s  jester,  drew 
that  jocular  personage  and  his  bride,  when  the  new- 
ly-wedded couple  proceeded  to  the  wonderful  palace 
of  ice  (which  was  built  on  the  frozen  Neva),  all  the 
ornaments  of  which  were  icicles,  and  the  appurten- 
ances of  which  were  also  ice,  even  to  the  cannon 
which  were  fired,  and  did  not  burst. 

“ When  Peter  the  great  came  to  the  throne,”  said 
he,  one  day,  “ he  found  only  two  lawyers  in  all  Rus- 
sia ; so.  Captain  Balgonie,  he  hung  one  as  an  ex- 
ample to  the  other.  Ah,  he  was  a truly  great  man, 
Peter!  The  English  admired  him,  solely  because 
he  tried  to  imitate  them ; but,  for  that  very  reason, 
we  don’t  approve  of  many  of  his  innovations.  We 
look  from  the  north  and  south  sides  of  the  same 
hedge.” 

It  is  not  surprising  that  Charlie  Balgonie  pre- 
ferred the  society  of  two  beautiful  young  girls  to 
that  of  a testy  old  boyar.  To  enhance  their  natural 


THE  SOLDIER  OP  THE  CZARINA. 


67 


attractions  and  winning  manners,  they  were  always 
dressed  in  the  most  fashionable  French  mode^  and 
wore  the  rich  stuffs  which  came  from  Moscow,  and 
even  from  China. 

They  and  he  had  many  topics  in  common,  on 
which  they  could  converse,  after  old  Count  Miero- 
witz  had  dined  and  dozed  off  to  sleep — such  as  the 
theatre  erected  some  years  before  at  Yaroslaff,  by 
Yolk  off,  whose  troupe  were  now  performing  the 
tragedies  of  Soumorokoff  at  St.  Petersburg,  wdiere 
a government  theatre  had  just  been  erected  by  a 
ukase;  while  another  ennobled  the  manager,  Yol- 
koff,  who  had  died  last  year,  after  appearing  at 
Moscow  in  Zelmira.  Their  knowledge  of  French 
and  German  opened  up  the  best  literature  of 
Europe  to  the  two  cousins,  which  was  fortunate ; 
for  at  the  period  of  our  narrative,  Russia  had  al- 
most none,  save  some  barbarous  national  songs, 
fabulous  ecclesiastical  records,  and  ferocious  tradi- 
tions: nor  is  she  now  much  advanced  in  letters, 
though  certainly,  two  months  after  publication, 
Charles  Dickens  may  be  read  at  Tobolsk — that  ter- 
rible Tobolsk — where,  as  we  have  all  read  in  our 
youth,  Elizabeth  wept  such  grateful  tears  on  the 
bosom  of  her  Smoloff. 

Exiled  from  court,  and  secluded  amid  these  forests 
by  the  Louga,  a Russian  lady  had  few  resources  for 
amusement  then ; so  the  unexpected  visit  of  Cap- 
tain Balgonie,  with  whose  name  and  courage  they 


68 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


were  quite  familiar,  proved  a most  welcome  and 
fortunate  circumstance  to  those  two  handsome  girls, 
who  were  merely  enduring  life,  or  simply  vegetat- 
ing, in  the  great  old  mansion  of  Count  Mierowitz. 

But  there  was  one  topic  in  which  our  soldier  of 
fortune  could  by  no  means  agree  with  Natalie 
Mierowna — her  bitter  and  most  unwise  hostility  to 
the  strongly  established  power  of  the  Empress,  or, 
as  she  styled  her,  the  woman  who  now  occupied 
the  throne  of  Ivan ; ” a prince  whom  she  viewed 
exactly  as  the  Scottish  Jacobites  did  the  Young 
Chevalier,”  and  a few  old  Frenchmen  do  at  the 
present  hour,  Henry  Y.,”  the  descendant  of  St. 
Louis.  These  sentiments,  however,  she  had  to  utter 
in  secret,  or  when  none  were  by  them ; and  when 
he  gazed  into  her  dark  and  beautiful  eyes,  so  full 
of  romantic  enthusiasm  and  of  dangerous  light,  he 
felt  thankful  that  one  so  peerless  and  so  perilous 
was  not,  at  all  events,  his  enemy. 

She  had  accompanied  the  Empress  on  her  cele- 
brated pilgrimage  to  the  ancient  cathedral  of  Rostov, 
by  the  Lake  of  Nero,  where  the  last  of  the  Prince 
of  Jaroslay  was  murdered  in  cold  blood  by  Ivan  the 
Terrible.  Her  expedition  had  taken  place  in  the 
May  of  the  preceding  year.  Catharine  and  her 
ladies  walked  ten  versts  afoot  daily,  and  it  was  at  the 
conclusion  of  this  devotional  journey  that  the  final 
quarrel  had  taken  place  concerning  the  mazurka 
with  the  Aide-de-camp  Ylasfief. 


THE  SOLDIER  OF  THE  CZARINA. 


69 


That  insult  shall  never  be  forgotten  here ! ” 
said  she,  stamping  a little  foot,  in  a prettily-em- 
broidered scarlet  shoe,  on  the  carpet  of  the  drawing- 
room, where,  fortunately  for  herself,  she  was  alone 
with  Balgonie  : an  insult  to  me — to  us,  who  have 

the  blood  of  Kuric  the  Yarangion  in  our  veins  ; and 
from  her — this  woman  of  Anhalt-Zerbst ! ” 

Balgonie  laughed ; for  the  Kuric  blood  is  to 
Russians  what  Captain  John  Smith’s  is  to  the  Yir- 
ginians,  and  the  Norman  element  to  the  English. 

Yes,”  she  continued,  ’tis  something  novel,  an 
insult  to  us,  from  this  Catharine,  misnamed  the 
Great,  who  has  enslaved  all  the  Ukraine,  and  given 
men  and  women  away  by  thousands — like  herds  of 
cattle,  to  her  courtiers  and  her  lovers  ! ” 

Oh,  be  wary  ; I pray  you,  be  wary,  or  speak  in 
French!”  said  Balgonie  imploringly,  while  laying 
his  hand  impressively — rather  too  impressively,  we 
fear — upon  hers,  which  was  so  delicately  smooth 
and  white,  and  was  placed  very  temptingly  within 
his  reach,  as  they  sat  near  each  other  for  the  pur- 
pose of  conversing  in  low  and  confidential  tones. 

“ The  people  are  mere  slaves  under  her  rule,” 
continued  Natalie,  lowering  her  voice  but  without 
withdrawing  that  coveted  hand ; perhaps  she  forgot 
it  in  her  energy;  but  the  omission  made  poor 
Charlie  Balgonie’s  honest  heart  beat  very  fast  in- 
deed, and  his  color  came  and  went  painfully  while 
her  dark  and  glorious  eyes  were  bent  on  his  : in 


70 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


her  I behold  only  a usurper,  who  wields  a knout  in 
lieu  of  a sceptre,  and  who  seats  herself  on  a throne 
of  human  skulls  ; but  the  time  is  coming  when  all 
these  things  shall  be  altered.” 

“ And  this  time,  Natalie  Mierowna — ^what  do  you 
mean  ? ” asked  Balgonie,  who  had  been  long  enough 
in  Russia  to  feel  a thrill  of  terror  at  words  so  wild 
and  dangerous. 

When  it  comes  you  will  learn ; if  the  blow  fails,  • 
woe  unto  those  on  whom  it  recoils!  You  may  es- 
cape as  a stranger ; but  I fear  me,  she  will  punish 
the  whole  Regiment  of  Smolensko — ” 

“ My  regiment — mine,  say  you  ? ” 

Yes,  yours,  Hospodeen,  even  as  Peter  the 
Great  did  the  Battalion  of  Strelitz,  for  adherence 
to  his  sister  Sophia;  and  that  we  know  to  be  one 
of  the  most  sanguinary  sacrifices  on  record,  even  in 
Russia.” 

Heaven  knows  that  is  admitting  a great  deal; 
but  you  say  either  too  much  or  too  little  to  satisfy 
my  curiosity ; explain  this  coming  peril — this  mys- 
tery— to  which  you  refer.” 

In  her  growing  energy,  Natalie’s  other  hand  was 
now  clasped  above  his,  and  truly  ^Hhe  situation  had 
its  charm.” 

Let  us  speak  of  it  no  more,”  said  she,  recollect- 
ing herself,  and  with  a strange  smile ; ere  long  you 
shall  know  all;  but  not  now — not  now.  Alas ! the 
best  I can  wish  you,  Ivanovitcli  Balgonie,  is,  that 


THE  SOLDIER  OF  THE  CZARINA. 


n 


your  chance  visit  here  may  not  also  compromise 
you  with  Catharine.’^ 

They  pressed  each  other’s  hands : ' it  was  done, 
perhaps,  merely  in  the  energy  of  conversation  ; but, 
to  be  brief,  Balgonie  found  himself  now  hopelessly 
and  helplessly  in  love  with  Natalie  Mierowna. 

Though  both  cousins  were  remarkable  for  their 
beauty — one  blonde,  the  other  dark — he  had  never 
for  a moment  wavered  between  them  ; for  he  had 
been,  from  the  first  moment  he  beheld  her,  irresist- 
ibly attracted  by  the  brilliant  and  black-eyed  Nat- 
alie. Besides  he  knew  well  that  Mariolizza  was 
betrothed,  or,  as  the  Bussians  might  justly  phrase 
it,  assigned  away,  to  his  friend  and  brother-officer, 
Basil  Mierowitz. 


CHAPTEE  YIIL 


m LOVE. 

IT  was  scarcely  possible  that  the  result  of  his 
visit  could  be  otherwise  than  it  had  proved; 
for  Natalie  was  no  common-place  beauty,  but 
one  who  had  subdued  the  hearts  of*  many  more 
men  than  Charlie  Balgonie — men,  who  now  at 
Moscow  and  St.  Petersburg  were  counting  the  days 
of  her  exile  from  the  Court  of  Catharine : and  when 
Charlie  thought  of  her  in  after  years,  the  calm  re- 
pose of  his  days  of  convalescence,  the  aspect  and 
furniture  of  his  chamber  in  the  old  Castle  of  Louga, 
tlie  genial  glow  of  the  peitchka,  th^  double  window 
sashes  with  their  bright  false  flowers  between,  the 
Byzantine  picture  of  the  Holy  Yirgin  with  its  shin- 
ing metal  halo,  and  the  varnished  panels  of  the 
walls,  were  all  associated,  as  in  a pleasant  dream, 
with  the  dark  and  beautiful  eyes,  the  round  taper 
arms,  the  white  and  delicate  hands  on  which  so 
many  diamonds  glittered,  the  jetty  hair  that  was 
twisted  in  massive  braids  (yet  fell  in  ringlets,  too) 
round  the  superb  head, — the  graceful,  floating,  and 
statuesque  flgure  of  Natalie  Mierowna,  always  so 
richly,  even  coquettishly  attired.  Natalie,  so  soft, 
72 


IK  LOYE. 


73 


SO  tender,  and  so  true,  in  all  the  relations  of  life 
and  the  amenities  of  society  ; and  yet  who  could  be 
so  keen  in  her  hate,  so  fiery  in  her  political  rancor, 
when  thinking  of  her  own  injuries,  and  the  terrible 
wrongs  of  the  captive  Ivan,  whose  adherent  she  liad 
become. 

Charlie  Balgonie  blessed  the  exile  and  choice  of 
circumstances,  all  so  sudden  and  unforeseen,  which 
had  cast  him  in  her  path.  He  loved  her  with  all 
the  passionate  adoration  so  beautiful  and  winning  a 
woman  could  inspire  in  a young  and  ardent  heart ; 
nor  was  it  long  before  Natalie  became  aware  of 
this,  and  was  affected  by  the  same  emotion.  There 
was  one  glance  given,  by  which  each  read  and 
understood  each  other’s  soul.”  Lovers  soon  find 
means  to  comprehend  each  other,  and  Mariolizza, 
who  speedily  guessed  their  secret,  which  she  cer- 
tainly thought  a dangerous  one,  found  many  excuses 
to  leave  them  often  together. 

The  long,  long  dream  of  his  youth  and  early 
manhood, — the  waking  dream  of  many  a lonely 
hour  of  reverie  in  the  summer  woods,  by  the  sea- 
shore, or  in  the  still  hours  of  military  duty,  in  camp 
and  bivouae — a fair  face  that  would  smile  on  him, 
— a girl  to  love,  and  worship,  and  trust, — one  who 
would  trust  and  love  him  in  return,  was  embodied 
at  last ; and  in  Natalie  he  saw  this  hitherto  imagin- 
ary sphinx  of  whom  he  had  been  thinking,  and  for 
whom  he  had  been  waiting  so  long. 


74 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Her  voice,  her  smile,  her  presence,  seemed  to  fill 
the  air  as  he  breathed  with  a new  charm,  that  made 
every  nerve  thrill,  investing  the  most  simple  and 
common  wants  of  every-day  life  with  sudden  de- 
lights and  joys ; in  short,  and  in  common  phrase- 
ology, the  poor  young  man  was  over  head  and 
ears  in  love.^’ 

The  declaration  of  his  passion,  and  Natalie’s  ac- 
ceptance of  it,  came  about  just  as  others  have  done ; 
and  for  three  days  after, — without  looking  the  fu- 
ture confidently  or  inquiringly  in  the  face, — Bal- 
gonie  abandoned  himself  to  the  delight  of  his  new 
and  successful  passion,  and  forgot  all  about  the 
troublesome  Empress,  her  pressing  dispatch,  and 
the  terrors  of  Lieutenant-General  Waymarn. 

How  could  he  think  of  such,  when  seated  in  the 
half-curtained  alcove  which  opened  off  the  drawing- 
room, on  those  calm  April  evenings ; when  the  soft 
breeze  that  fioated  over  the  vast  forests  came  laden 
with  the  odor  of  the  spruce  and  fir  boughs  ? Seated, 
with  Natalie — in  all  the  glory  of  her  youth,  her 
beauty,  and  the  fiush  of  her  first  love — by  his  side, 
often  deftly  and  with  rapid  fingers  weaving  up  the 
coils  of  her  heavy  black  ham  (which  would  come 
down,  somehow,  on  these  occasions) ; as  she  did  so, 
displaying  to  greater  advantage  than  ever  the  mag- 
nificent contour  of  her  bust,  her  white  shoulders,  and 
taper  arms,  and  adding  even  to  the  coquettish  side 
glance  of  the  half-veiled  eye,  the  most  splendid  of 


IN  LOVE. 


75 


all  her  natural  ormaments  were  those  great,  heavy 
loose  braids  on  which  the  sunlight  shone. 

What  was  to  be  the  future  of  all  this  ? 

On  the  strong  friendship  of  Basil  Mierowitz  he 
could  fully  rely;  but  then  Natalie  was  on  bad  terms 
with  the  vindictive  Empress,  and  he,  Balgonie,  was 
a soldier,  and,  according  to  the  rules  of  the  Russian 
service,  could  not  marry  without  permission  from 
his  colonel,  who,  at  present,  would  not  dare  to  ac- 
cord it,  circumstanced  as  the  bride  would  be. 

Marry  ? What  would  the  proud  old  Russian 
boyar  say,  or  do,  or  think,  when  he  heard  that  the 
penniless  Scot — the  mere  adventurer — the  soldier 
of  fortune,  was  the  accepted  lover  of  his  daughter, 
and  that  he  had  dared  to  lift  his  eyes  to  her  other- 
wise than  in  the  way  of  solemn  and  aw^ful  respect  ? 

If  his  High  Excellency  could  have  but  peeped 
into  the  aforesaid  alcove  on  some  of  the  occasions 
referred  to  ! The  mere  fact  of  being  a Scot  would 
not  have  conveyed  much  to  the  mind  of  the  Count. 

. If  to  any  unlettered  Englishman  of  the  present  day, 
the  names  of  Moldavia,  Croatia,  Bulgaria,  Servia, 
Pomerania,  Grodno,  Mingrelia,  and  so  forth,  give 
but  a vague  idea  of  their  whereabouts  or  history,  it 
was  perhaps  worse  in  the  Count’s  instance  ; for  so 
far  as  he,  worthy  man,  was  concerned,  or  for  all  he 
knew  to  the  contrary,  the  Land  of  Cakes  might  have 
been  in  the  flying  island  of  Laputa. 

“ He  would  be  furious,  no  doubt,”  thought  Bal- 


76 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


gonie ; but  ne  might  soothe  his  troubled  mind  by 
flogging  a few  serfs,  shooting  a few  brown  bears, 
and  draining  sundry  horns  of  quass.” 

Charlie  had  been  present  at  more  than  one  Rus- 
sian marriage  and  betrothal,  and  the  coolness  of  the 
ceremony  had  excited  his  astonishment  and  repug- 
nance ; for,  in  that  country,  those  life-enduring  ar- 
rangements are  concluded  by  a mere  match-maker, 
who  makes  the  proposal,  not  to  the  girl,  but  to  her 
father.  He  remembered  particularly  the  case  of 
Lieutenant  Tschekin’s  espousal  with  the  daughter 
of  General  Weymarn,  who,  having  stated  her  dower 
to  the  go  between, — a thousand  pheasants  or  so, — 
the  gallant  subaltern  was  satisfled,  and  thus,  as  usual, 
the  whole  affair  was  settled  without  the  taste  or  in- 
clination of  the  young  lady  being  consulted  or  con- 
sidered. In  Russia,  the  papa  consents ; and,  accord- 
ing to  some  old  custom,  mamma  pretends  to  object 
and  weep. 

My  daughter,”  said  the  General,  “ I have  given 
you  away  in  presence  of  my  aide-de-camp.” 

To  one  I know,  father  ? ” she  asked. 

^^No.” 

“ To  whom,  then  ? ” she  continued,  perfectly  un- 
disturbed. 

One  you  shall  soon  know — here  he  comes ; and 
this  is  thy  bridegroom,  daughter  : art  satisfled  ? ” 
The  young  lady,  of  course,  declared  she  was  sat- 
isfied. She  and  the  Lieutenant  placed  their  hands 


IN  LOVE* 


behind  them,  stretched  out  their  necks,  pouting 
their  lips  for  a very  frigid  kiss,  and  the  matter  was 
soon  concluded  by  a priest. 

When  Balgonie  thought  of  the  delicacy  and  gen- 
tleness of  Natalie,  and  remembered  the  marriage 
of  the  Lieutenant  Tschekin,  he  shrunk  alike  from 
the  idea  of  seeing  her  subjected  to  the  mummery 
of  a Greek  espousal  and  the  vulgar  horrors  of  a 
wedding  feast  and  drinking  bout  a la  Itusse. 

At  last  he  began  to  wake  from  his  dream,  to  find 
the  stern  necessity  of  departing ; and,  indeed,  the 
snub-nosed  Podatchkine,  who  was  always  hovering 
about,  seemed  as  a perpetual  reminder  of  the  duty 
he  was  neglecting.  The  lovers  were  solemnly  be- 
trothed in  secret, — Mariolizza  was  their  only  confi- 
dant,— and  at  present  they  could  but  arrange  to 
wait  until  they  could  mutually  confide  in  Basil 
Mierowitz,  whom  Natalie,  ere  long,  expected  to  see. 
To  write  to  each  other,  save  by  special  messenger, 
was  deemed  at  present  unwise ; but  Balgonie  would 
visit  her  as  he  returned  again  to  Novgorod. 

So  the  last  evening  they  were  to  spend  together 
came;  and  they  were  seated,  wreathed  in  each 
other’s  arms,  with  Natalie’s  cheek  resting  on  Bal- 
gonie’s  shoulder,  in  an  embowered  rustic  seat,  not 
far  from  the  very  place  where  he  had  so  boldly 
crossed  the  swollen  rif^er  on  that  eventful  night. 

Charlie’s  heart  was  full  of  sadness  and  bewilder- 
ment ; he  could  but  mutter  and  whisper  of  his  love 


THE  SECRET  DiSPATClli 


and  tlieir  hopes,  and  again  and  again  kiss  Natalie 
on  the  cheek,  on  the  lips  and  snowy  neck,  her  hands 
and  arms,  wliile  her  tears  flowed  fast;  for  she  had 
all  the  cooing  tenderness  of  a ringdove  now,  and 
could  only  murmur  from  time  to  time : — 

Oh,  Carl,  Carl — my  own  Carl ! ’’  and  so  forth ; 
and,  like  other  young  ladies  similarly  circumstanced 
on  the  eve  of  separation,  believed  herself  to  be  the 
most  miserable  being  in  the  world.  But,  amid  all 
this,  she  suddenly  started  and  grew  pale,  on  seeing 
a flgure  approach. 

See,  Carl,  see  ! ” she  exclaimed  : that  horrible 

woman  must  be  ominous  of  evil  at  suqh  a time. 
Why  has  she  been  permitted  to  approach  ? ” 

Balgonie  saw,  at  a little  distance,  only  a Russian 
gipsy  girl,  possessed  evidently  of  considerable  per- 
sonal attractions.  She  stood  timidly,  and  irresolute 
whether  to  advance  or  retire ; and  bowed  her  head 
with  great  humility,  while  crossing  her  flne  but 
dusky  hands  and  arms  upon  her  breast.  In  old  age 
the  Russian  female  gipsies  are  as  remarkable  for 
their  extreme  hideousness,  as  in  youth  they  are 
famous  for  personal  beauty;  so  this  young  girl  was 
full  of  picturesque  loveliness,  and  instead  of  being 
clothed  in  rags,  as  the  wanderers  of  her  race  are 
elsewhere,  her  costume  was  brilliant  in  colours  and 
rich  in  material.  She  had  large  glittering  ear-rings ; 
a gaudy  kerchief  bound  her  black  tresses ; and  her 
rounded  cheeks  being  freely  roughed,  added  to  the 


m LOVE. 


79 


wonderful  lustre  of  her  dark  and  dusky  eyes,  and  to 
the  generally  theatrical  character  of  her  singular 
beauty  and  bearing. 

Oh ! ’’  resumed  Natalie,  with  something  of  a 
shudder,  ’tis  Olga  Paulo wna:  don’t  let  her  speak  to 
us  in  our  parting  hour,  Carl,  lest  we  be  compelled 
to  hear  her  sing,  and  that  may  perhaps  bode  evil. 
The  dvornick,  I understand,  has  thrice  by  dog  and 
whip  driven  away  this  gipsy  girl,  who  has  come  to 
the  house  again  and  again,  ostensibly  to  seek  alms, 
but  doubtless  only  to  steal  or  work  mischief  by  her 
cunning ; for  though  our  Russian  gipsies  are  not  al- 
lowed to  pitch  their  tents  on  any  land  without  the 
express  consent  of  the  owner,  this  girl’s  brother, 
Nicholas  Paulo vitch  (as  he  calls  himself),  a half- 
blood,  has  permanently  settled  on  our  estate,  some- 
where in  the  forests;  though  he  is  despised  and 
loathed  by  the  peasantry,  whom,  doubtless,  he 
loathes  and  hates  most  cordially  in  turn.  I do  wish 
she  would  go  away  without  being  ordered  to  do  so.” 

Little  did  Natalie  know  that  those  ill-requited 
visits  of  the  poor  gipsy  girl  had  direct  reference  to 
the  life  and  safety  of  him  whose  hand  clasped  hers 
so  tenderly  and  confidingly. 

Faugh!”  said  Natalie,  with  increasing  annoy- 
ance ; she  is  about  to  sing, — something  naughty  no 
doubt, — but  her  voice  will  soon  summon  the  dvor- 
nick.” 

Many  of  those  female  wanderers  in  Russia  can 


80 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


sing  divinely ; and  it  is  on  record  that  even  the 
great  Catalani  was  so  enchanted  by  the  melodious 
voice  of  a gipsy  girl  at  Moscow,  that  she  took  from 
her  own  shoulders  a superb  shawl,  which  had  been 
given  to  her  by  the  Empress,  and  placed  it  on  those 
of  the  nomadic  singer,  ^^as  a tribute  from  art  to 
nature.” 

And  Olga  now  began  to  sing  with  great  sweet- 
ness one  of  those  Russian  songs,  by  which  the  gip- 
sies, to  flatter  the  people,  sought  to  foretell  the 
downfall  of  the  Crescent ; and  many  such  prophetic 
strains  were  current  even  during  the  war  in  the 
Crimea,  as  foreshadowing  the  fate  of  the  sick 
man”  at  Constantinople. 

Years  after  years  shall  roll. 

Ages  o’er  ages  glide, 

Before  the  world’s  control 

Shall  check  the  Crescent’s  pride. 

' Banished  from  place  to  place. 

Where’er  the  ocean’s  roar, 

The  mighty  gipsy  race. 

Shall  visit  every  shore. 

‘‘But  when  the  hundredth  year 
Shall  three  times  doubled  be. 

Then  shall  the  end  appear 
Of  all  their  slavery. 

Then  shall  the  warlike  powers 
From  distant  climes  return, 

Egypt  again  be  ours, 

While  the  Turkish  domes  shall  burn  1 

“ Again  the  Christian’s  cross 
Shall  over  stamboul  wave, 


IN  LOVE. 


81 


And  ruin,  weeds,  and  moss, 

Mark  tlie  last  Sooltan’s  grave  I 
Again  shall  Christmas  hells 
Ring  where  the  Muezzins  cry 
When  across  the  Dardanelles 
The  Moslem  hordes  shall  fly  ! 

So  Egypt  shall  he  freed. 

Her  tribes  return  once  more. 

Their  flocks  and  herds  to  feed 

Where  their  fathers  dwelt  of  yore : 

When  all  our  warlike  powers. 

From  distant  climes  return. 

Then  Egypt  shall  he  ours. 

While  the  Turkish  turrets  hum  ! 

The  last  line  ended  in  a shriek,  with  which  a cry 
from  Natalie  mingled ; for  the  cruel  dvornick  had 
been  stealing  through  the  thicket  unperceived,  and 
now  bestowed  a heavy  lash  across  the  tender  should- 
ers of  the  cowering  and  shrinking  girl ; but  ere  he 
could  repeat  it,  Balgonie  sprang  forward,  arrested 
the  descending  whip,  and  then  placing  in  the  hand 
of  the  singer  a few  Livonian  groschen,  bade  her 
hasten  away,  on  which  she  departed,  witli  tears  of 
pain  and  gratitude,  after  pressing  his  fingers  to  her 
lips ; and,  in  her  terror  and  confusion,  leaving  her 
task  undone — her  warning  of  coming  treachery  un- 
told. 

Oh,  Carl ! ’’  said  Natalie,  laying  her  head  again 
on  Balgonie’s  breast,  dearest  Carl,  I am  so  glad 
she  has  gone  without  anathematizing  us — or,  or 
weaving  some  mischievous  spell ; for,  smile  as  you 


82 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


may,  I can’t  help  fearing  those  people  ! I am  a true 
Russian,  and  dread  the  evil  eye ! ” 

Richer  by  a lock  of  dark  and  silky  hair  and  a 
diamond  ring  (both  the  objects  of  many  a secret 
kiss),  but  leaving  his  heart  behind  him,  in  one  swift 
hour  after  this  little  episode,  Balgonie  had  departed 
to  meet,  and,  for  greater  security,  to  travel  in  con- 
sort with,  a caravan  of  a hundred  and  fifty  boors, 
who  were  conveying  sugar  from  Moscow  to  St. 
Petersburg. 

He  was  guided  again  by  the  sly  Podatchkine,  who 
had  resolved  to  take  especial  good  care  that  the 
said  caravan  should  be  avoided. 

God  be  with  you,  Hospodeen — God  be  with 
you — adieu,”  said  the  old  Count,  lifting  his  square 
velvet  cap  courteously,  as  he  bade  farewell  to  his 
guest  at  tlie  porte-cochere. 

Balgonie  so  respectfully  kissed  the  hands  of  Nat- 
alie and  Mariolizza,  that  none  could  have  detected 
a difference  in  his  manner  to  either;  and  certainly 
none  could  have  suspected  that  the  tears  of  the 
former  were  yet  wet  upon  his  cheek — ^her  kisses 
lingering  on  his  lip,  that  he  seemed  to  leave  his  soul 
upon  her  hand,  and  that  the  wrung  hearts  of  both 
were  swollen  with  concealed  emotion. 

“ Uich  ! ” thought  Corporal  Michail  Podatchkine 
as  he  rode  after  the  officer  into  the  deep  forest  Pd 
as  soon  think  of  kissing  the  foot  as  the  hand  ; who 
knows  among  what  carrion  either  may  have  been 


IN  LOVE. 


83 


stuck?  By  St.  Nicholas,  I would  rather  eat  a 
sheep’s  tail  or  a rump  steak  from  an  old  troop  mare 
than  kiss  either.” 

Some  hours  after  Balgonie’s  departure,  and  when 
Natalie  in  the  solitude  of  her  own  room  was  aban- 
doned to  tears  and  unavailing  regrets,  a trusted  mes- 
senger from  her  brother  arrived  with  a brief  note, 
vTitten  so  enigmatically  that  none  save  herself  could 
have  understood  or  deciphered  it ; but  the  spirit  of 
it  was  briefly  this : — 

All  is  arranged  for  freeing  the  prisoner  of 
S.  (chlusselburg)  by  a stratagem.  A dispatch  that 
may  counteract,  if  not  baffle  our  plans,  and  fatally 
compromise  us  all,  has  been  sent  by  pld  Weymarn 
to  St.  Petersburg.  I know  not  who  the  bearer  is ; 
but  be  assured  of  this,  he  will  never  reach  it  alive. 
"We  have  set  Podatchkine  on  his  track,  and  he, 
worthy  Livonion,  for  two  hundred  roubles,  would 
skin  his  own  father  alive.” 

After  reading  this  pleasant  epistle,  little  wonder 
is  it  that  Natalie  was  found  by  Mariolizza,  as  the 
twilight  deepened,  half  senseless  upon  her  bed,  cold, 
in  tears,  and  utterly  miserable. 


CHAPTEE  IX. 


DELUDED. 

LOVEE  has  occasionally  been  likened  to  a 
fool,  as  being  a man  possessed  by  one  idea — 
his  mistress.  This  was  certainly  somewhat  of  poor 
Charlie  Balgonie’s  state  of  mind.  He  saw  only  the 
dark  eyes,  the  half  drooped  lids,  and  the  farewell 
glance  of  Natalie ; so  full  of  hidden  and  tender 
meaning ; and  while  thinking  of  her  and  of  her 
last  words  and  promises,  their  mutual  hopes  of  the 
future,  based  almost  entirely  on  Basil,  he  fell  an 
easy  pray  to  the  plans  and  schemes  of  the  wily  Cor- 
poral Podatchkine,  who  saw  only  his  anticipated 
two  hundred  silver  roubles ; and  who,  knowing  the 
country  as  well  as  if  it  had  been  every  acre,  rood, 
and  verst  this  own  property,  led  him  on  and  on  he 
knew  not  where ; but,  at  all  events,  two  hours  after 
they  should  have  met  the  caravan,  they  found  them- 
selves, to  all  appearance,  lost  in  a dense  forest  of 
dark  pine  trees. 

Failing  the  caravan,  having  now  proceeded,  as  he 
believed,  some  twenty  miles  or  so,  Balgonie  had 
thoughts  of  passing  the  night  at  the  house  of  a 

friend  of  Count  Mierowitz,  a duornin^  of  whom  he 
84 


DELUDED. 


85 


had  been  told  by  Mariolizza,  who  laughingly  as- 
sured him,  that  this  personage  was  a fine  Russian 
gentleman  of  the  old  school,  who  beat  his  wife  reg- 
ularly every  Thursday  and  Saturday  with  a whip  of 
thongs/’  and  was  seldom  sober. 

Those  duornins  were  country  gentlemen,  who 
held  them  lands  by  knights’  service,  and  were  bound 
to  attend  the  Czar  on  horseback  in  time  of  war. 
Formerly  it  was  sufficient  to  send  a man  well  armed 
and  mounted  ; but  Peter  the  Great  first  compelled 
them  or  their  sons  to  serve  in  person,  if  they  could 
not  pay  for  a substitute. 

In  short,  though  he  knew  it  not,  Balgonie  had 
been  for  the  last  two  hours  riding  merely  in  a wide 
circle,  and,  by  the  careful  guidance  of  Podatchkine, 
was  now  not  many  miles  from  the  hut  of  the  gipsy 
woodman,  Nicholas  Paulovitch  ; and,  consequently, 
he  was  much  nearer  the  Castle  of  Louga  than  he 
had  the  least  idea  of. 

On  this  night  there  was  a glorious  Aurora  in  the 
north;  and  full  of  his  love,  his  own  tender  thoughts, 
and  inspired  by  the  beauty  of  the  scene,  it  seemed, 
to  the  somewhat  provoked  Podatchkine,  that  the 
dreaming  Captain  was  quite  disposed  to  pass  the 
nignt  where  he  was. 

When  the  dense  wood  of  stupendous  pines  opened 
into  the  long  vistas,  the  whole  northern  quarter  of 
the  sky  could  be  seen,  illuminated  from  the  horizon 
to  the  zenith.  Gloriously  bright  as  the  most  bril- 


86 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


liant  phosphorus,  masses  of  fire  arose  in  the  form 
of  columns  that  waved,  to^vered,  and  shot  into  the 
air,  with  streaks  of  fainter  light  between.  Anon 
they  all  blended  and  merged  into  each  other  with 
renewed  grandeur,  aslant,  or  radiating  from  a centre, 
like  the  sticks  of  a mighty  fan.  All  that  portion 
of  the  heavens  seemed  a mass  of  shining  gold, 
rubies,  and  sapphires,  with  a wonderous  light 
streaming  over  them,  broadening,  brightening,  and 
deepening,  then  fading  away,  to  fiash  forth  again  in 
greater  beauty  and  glory,  while,  as  if  to  enhance 
the  magnificence  of  this  illumination,  many  falling 
stars  shot  across  it,  leaving  in  their  train  sparkles 
of  light,  more  brilliant  even  than  the  glory  that 
blazed  beyond.  In  black  outline  between,  and  in 
the  immediate  foreground,  towered  the  dark  and 
solemn  pines,  in  solitude  and  silence. 

Not  a sound  was  heard  but  the  occasional  snort 
of  their  horses,  or  the  cry  of  a distant  wolf. 

Balgonie  was  surmising  whether  Natalie  would 
be  surveying  the  beautiful  natural  illumination 
from  her  window,  or  from  the  terrace : he  forgot 
that  it  was  nothing  new  to  her.  Certainly  it  proved 
of  little  interest  to  Michail  Podatchkine,  who  under 
his  thick  beard,  growled  at  the  officer  for  loitering. 

The  Scottish  islesmen  call  the  streamers  of  the 
Aurora  “ the  merry  dancers ; ’’  but  the  Siberians 
name  tliem  the  raging  host : ” and  • Balgonie  was 
reflecting  what  a relief  their  brilliance  must  prove 


DELUDED. 


87 


to  the  lonely  hunters,  who  at  that  very  time  were 
pursuing  the  white  bear  and  the  blue  fox,  far  be- 
yond the  Lena,  and  along  the  shores  of  the  Icy  Sea, 
when  his  attendant  disturbed  his  reverie. 

Well,  Michail,’’  said  he,  in  reply  to  some  re- 
mark in  wliich  the  Corporal,  who  saw  nothing  won- 
derful in  the  matter,  urged  that  they  should  pro- 
ceed, ‘^we  liave  missed  the  sugar  caravan,  and  can- 
not discover  the  residence  of  the  duornin  I spoke 
of,  so  I am  rather  provoked  with  you.” 

Oh,  Excellency,  who  can  withstand  God  or  the 
Great  Novgorod  ? ” whined  the  fellow,  using  an  old 
Russian  proverb. 

Jean  Paul  Richter  says,  the  more  weakness,  the 
more  lying ; force  goes  straight,  but  any  cannon-ball 
with  cavities  in  it  goes  crooked.”  Some  such 
thought  as  this  occurred  to  Balgonie,  as  he  checked 
his  horse,  and  half  turning,  round,  with  a stern  ex- 
pression in  his  face,  which  the  light  in  the  north 
made  sufficiently  plain,  he  said  : — 

Rascal ! I fear  you  are  deceiving  me  again ! ” 
Hustled  up  on  his  saddle,  rather  than  in  it  with 
his  knees  on  his  holsters  and  his  lance  slung  behind 
him,  Podatchkine  made  many  signs  of  the  cross,  and 
called  on  St.  Sergius  and  all  the  other  moshtschi,  or 
saints  of  Russia,  to  bear  witness  that  he  was  as  in- 
nocent as  a young  bear  of  any  such  foul  idea;  but 
only  begged  that  his  Excellency  would  proceed,  and 
assured  him  that  the  track  they  were  on  must  as- 


88 


THK  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


suredly  bring  them,  ere  long,  to  some  -woodman’s 
dwelling. 

At  this  time,  such  is  the  slavish  influence  of 
superstition,  that  Podatchkine,  for  mere  fellowship, 
kept  close  to  the  very  man  against  whom  he  had 
formed  the  most  flendish  schemes ; for  stories  of  the 
Wood  Fairies, — of  the  Leechie^  or^  Forest-demon, 
whose  fangs  tore  the  benighted  asunder, — of  the 
Domovoi^  or  mischievous  Russian  Brownie, — of  the 
Yodianoi^  or  smiling  River- spirit,  who  lured  travel- 
lers to  a watery  doom, — of  wolves  and  bears  in 
ravening  herds,  came  fast  upon  his  memory ; for  the 
forest  was  growing  denser,  and  the  darkness  deep- 
ened painfully  after  the  Aurora  faded  away,  and  a 
few  solitary  stars  alone  glinted  through  the  open- 
ings between  the  broad,  flat,  pendant  branches  of 
the  intertwisted  pines. 

The  silence  of  the  night  was  now  broken  only  by 
the  whistling  croak  of  the  valdchnep^  or  great  wood- 
cock, as  he  darted  from  amid  the  black  gloom  of  a 
pine  tree,  or  the  lighter  shadow  of  the  graceful,  but, 
as  yet,  leafless  birch ; and  the  craven  and  clamorous 
anxiety  that  had  been  giving  real  pangs,  and  even 
qualms  of  conscience,  to  the  superstitious  Podatch- 
kine began  to  subside,  when  the  wood  opened  a little, 
a red  light  appeared,  and  they  approached  the  cot- 
tage of  Nicholas  Paulovitch,  the  half-bred. 

It  was,  as  already  stated,  built  of  logs,  squared  by 
the  hatchet  outside  and  inside,  and  whitened  by 


DELUDED. 


89 


chalk : before  it  yawned  a deep  draw-well,  with  a 
bucket,  handle,  and  winch. 

’Tis  the  cottage  of  a man  I know.  Here,  Ex- 
cellency, we  can  pass  the  night,”  said  Podatchkine, 
leaping  from  his  horse  and  dutifully  taking  Bal- 
gonie’s  bridle,  as  if  to  anticipate  any  proposition  of 
proceeding  further.  There  is  a shed  behind  where 
I shall  stable  ouis.  horses : Nicholas,  I know,  will 
make  us  welcome  to  his  lodge.” 

In  a few  minutes  more,  Balgonie  found  himself 
seated  in  the  cottage,  the  aspect  of  which  struck 
him  as  being  peculiarly  comfortless,  dingy,  and 
squalid,  as  he  viewed  it  by  the  light  of  a loutchin^ 
or  species  of  pine  torch,  which  stood  in  a rusty  iron 
holder  on  the  rough  deal  table,  whereon  lay  a pack 
of  frayed  and  dog-eared  cards. 

On  the  walls  were  some  rude  images,  stuck  over 
wdth  crumbs  of  black  bread,  which  attracted  the 
flies  in  summer  and  the  dirt  at  all  times.  In  a 
place  of  honor  was  a holy  effigy,  with  some  train  oil 
flaring  before  it  in  a tin  sconce,  as  a species  of  votive 
lamp ; for  the  proprietor  affected  religion  quite  as 
much  as  Mr.  Gamaliel  Balgonie  did  in  a more  civil- 
ised part  of  the  world. 

The  furniture  consisted  of  a few  plain  stools,  and 
some  very  dirty  bearskins  spread  on  the  floor  in  the 
corners,  as  beds ; and  on  the  table  was  a pitcher  of 
foaming  and  seething  quass,  with  wooden  bowls  to 
drink  it  by. 


90 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Balgonie  took  in  all  these  details  at  a glance. 

How  great  would  have  been  his  surprise,  if  he  had 
known  that  after  riding  so  many  miles,  he  was  only 
a short  distance  from  lier^  from  Natalie,  who  was 
now  weeping  bitterly  and  sleeplessly  on  the  bosom 
of  her  cousin  for  him,  and  for  the  fate  she  dreaded, 
and  yet  had  not  the  power  to  avert,  or  from  which 
to  save  him. 

In  addition  to  Podatchkine  and  the  host,  Nicholas 
Paulo vitch,  who  stood  respectfully  at  a little  distance 
from  Balgonie,  and  was  appraising  the  exact  value 
of  his  costume,  arms,  and  ornaments,  even  to  Nata- 
lie’s diamond  ring,  there  was  present  another  ill- 
visaged  fellow,  with  a powerful  figure,  square  shoul- 
ders, and  giant  beard,  like  every  Russian  of  the 
lower  order ; eyes  that  were  small  and  piercing,  like 
those  of  a mouse ; a long,  fierce  nose  and  jagged 
teeth,  hair  shorn  off  close  above  the  eyebrows  and 
brushed  all  down  straight  from  the  crown  of  his 
head,  which  in  form  resembled  a cone  or  a pine- 
apple. 

This  Barbarian,  who  was  dressed  chiefiy  in  a 
shoubah  of  sheepskin,  and  had  a small,  but  sharp, 
hatchet  and  dagger  in  his  girdle,  was  a Stepniak, 
from  a district  where  nothing  like  a town  was  ever 
seen  or  known,  but  whose  aid  and  strength  Paulo- 
vitch  thought  might  be  useful  and  necessary  in  the 
work  he  and  Podatchkine  had  cut  out  for  themselves 
in  the  night. 


CHAPTEE  X. 


THE  CORPORAL  IN  HIS  OWH  TRAP. 

ALGOXIE  was  rather  weary  after  his  long  and 
desultory  ride  by  rough  and  unfrequented 
roads,  chiefly  devious  forest  paths ; he  felt  thirsty, 
and  looked  at  the  pitcher  of  quass. 

Will  his  Excellency  drink  ? •’  asked  Nicholas 
Paulovitch,  in  his  hoarse  and  husky  voice. 

Now  as  quass  is  simply  a species  of  sour  beer, 
made  of  rye  and  oatmeal,  colored  by  a red  berry 
and  is  generally  the  beverage  by  which  the  Eussians 
wash  down  their  coarse  bread  and  salt,  Balgonie  de- 
clined : the  Stepniak  proposed  to  add  thereto  a dash 
of  train  oil ; but  the  suggestion  made  the  young 
ofiicer  shudder. 

I have  fortunately  one  bottle  of  Ehine  wine,” 
said  the  woodman,  with  a rapid  and  furtive  glance 
at  his  comrades ; his  Excellency  will  doubtless 
honor  us  by  taking  it  with  his  supper,  at  least  with 
such  fare  as  the  forest  produces,  a stewed  rabbit  or 
so.” 

I thank  you,  good  fellow.  Where  is  this  cot- 
tage situated  ? ” 

Situated,”  replied  Nicholas,  with  a quick  and 

91 


92 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


uneasy  glance  at  the  Corporal,  fearing  there  might 
be  some  discrepancy  in  their  information. 

“Yes,  in  what  part  of  the  country?’’  said  Po- 
datchkine  ; “ for  we  naturally  wish  to  know.” 

“NearYelie.” 

“ Then  I am  somewhere  about  forty  versts  from 
the  Louga  ? ” 

“Yes,  Excellency,  precisely,”  replied  the  rascal. 

“ Hence,  if  my  horse  is  fresh,  I may  reach 
Schlusselburg  to-morrow  ? ” 

“ Scarcely,  as  it  lies  fully  a hundred  versts  be- 
yond Yelie,”  said.  Nicholas, 

“ Is  the  distance  so  great  ? ” exclaimed  Balgonie, 
little  knowing  that  it  was  even  more,  and  all  un- 
suspicious of  how  these  wretches  were  deluding 
him.* 

“ But,  Excellency,  we  may  prove  more  able 
guides  than  Michail  Podatchkine,”  said  the  gipsy 
woodman ; “ for  we — that  is  the  Siepniak  and  1 — 
must  proceed  to  St.  Petersburg!!  to-morrow,  on  a 
little  piece  of  business  we  shall  have  to  perform 
together.” 

“ Poor  devils  ! ” thought  Podatchkine,  “ if  you 
take  his  body  to  St.  Peterburgh,  you  will  both  be 


*The  cottage  of  those  assassins  is  said  to  have  been  situated 
ten  versts,  or  about  eight  miles  distant  from  Louga  on  the  road 
to  Velie.  Vide  dispatch  from  General  Weymarn  to  the  Em- 
press, dated  8th  August,  concerning  Carl  Ivanovitch  Balgonie, 
a Scottish  Captain  in  the  Regiment  of  Smolensko/^ — Utrecht 
Gazette, 


THE  CORPORAL  IN  HIS  OWN  TRAP. 


93 


accused  of  murder  and  kiiouted,  as  sure  as  my 
name  is  Michail;  so  I shall  save  my  fifty  silver 
roubles.” 

Even  at  the  present  day  in  Russia,  few  will  ven- 
ture to  receive  or  meddle  with  a dead  body,  or  at- 
tempt to  succour  a dying  or  a drowning  person,  in 
dread  of  the  dangerous  accusations  and  extortions  of 
the  police. 

A sound,  as  of  footsteps,  and  of  something  like  a 
drinking  vessel  falling  on  the  floor  of  an  upper 
apartment,  made  the  woodman  start  up  with  an  oath 
of  astonishment  and  alarm.  He  hurriedly  applied 
a ladder  to  the  trap  which  gave  admission  to  this 
place,  and  ascended  into  it ; but  returned  almost  im- 
mediately to  say,  there  was  no  one  there.”  The 
evident  surprise  and  alarm  of  the  three  men  at  this 
trivial  occurrence,  is  said  to  have  been  the  flrst  cause 
of  exciting  Balgonie’s  suspicion. 

He  glanced  at  the  Stepniak,  who  sat  silently  ob- 
servant in  a corner,  drinking  his  quass,  with  his  feet 
resting  against  the  rude  peitchka,  or  stone  stove, 
which  was  built  into  the  log  wall  of  the  cottage,  and 
when  surveying  his  vast  bulk  and  colossal  stature, 
together  with  his  singularly  ferocious  aspect,  the  re- 
flection occurred  to.  him,  that  he  should  have  placed 
his  pistols  in  his  girdle  instead  of  leaving  them  in 
the  holsters  of  the  saddle. 

He  was  the  reverse  of  timid ; he  was  brave  even 
to  rashness,  and  had  faced  death  many  times  ” (to 


94 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


quote  General  Weymarn)  since  his  career  of  wander- 
ing began ; but  the  idea  certainly  did  flash  upon  his 
mind,  that  his  situation  in  that  lonely  forest  had  its 
perils,  and  that  two  men  more  repulsive  in  aspect 
and  in  bearing  tlian  the  gipsy  and  Stepniak,  he  had 
never  seen,  even  in  Russia. 

Was  it  some  mysterious  and  intuitive  sense  of 
danger  drawing  near  that  made  such  thoughts  pass 
through  the  steady  mind  of  Balgonie  ? 

He  and  Podatchkine  were  both  armed,  and  even 
were  these  men  outlaws,  they  would  scarcely,  he  be- 
lieved, dare  to  assault  an  officer  on  military  duty ; 
besides,  the  very  name  of  Schlusselburgh,  whither 
he  was  proceeding,  carried  a wholesome  terror  with 
it;  so  dismissing  his  casual  suspicions,  Charlie  un- 
buckled his  sword,  and  seated  himself  at  the  table, 
on  which  a cold  supper  of  stewed  rabbits  and  coarse 
rye  bread  was  laid  for  the  four  who  were  present. 

A platter  was  placed  for  a flfth  person  whom 
Nicholas  remarked  to  Podatchkine  in  a growling 
tone  was  still  abroad  in  the  forest,  or  had  not  re- 
turned from  some  place  which  was  named  in  a 
whisper. 

With  an  affectation  of  extreme  respect  and  cour- 
tesy, none  of  the  three  worthies  would  seat  them- 
selves at  the  table,  until  Balgonie  specially  invited 
and  urged  them  in  succession  to  do  so. 

The  bottle  of  Rhine  wine  was  produced  from  the 
apartment  above  and  opened.  The  lengtli  of  the 


THE  CORPORAL  IN  HIS  OWN  TRAP.  95 

\ 

cork  and  the  dust  on  the  bottle  (wherever  it  came 
from  originally)  argued  well  of  the  contents;  and 
two  horns,  one  of  which  had  a handsome  silver  rim, 
were  placed  for  the  Captain  and  Corporal. 

The  former  was  rather  surprised  to  find  such  a 
drinking  vessel  at  this  silver  mounted  cup  in  a 
place  so  squalid,  and  he  was  about  to  lift  and  ex- 
amine it,  when  Nicholas  Paulovitch,  with  almost 
nervous  haste,  filled  it,  and  also  that  of  the  Corpo- 
ral, to  the  brim. 

To  the  surprise  of  Balgonie,  the  latter  exhibited 
some  undisguised  alarm  on  seeing  wine  placed  be- 
fore him  ; it  was  an  attention  under  all  the  circum- 
stances he  neither  wished  nor  expected ; and  so  he 
declined  to  drink  of  it,  saying  that  lie  was  a true 
Russ,  and  would  adhere  to  t e quass.” 

Nay,  fear  not,  friend  Michail,”  said  the  wood- 
man, ’tis  the  best  of  Rhine  wine.  The  cup  with 
the  silver  mounting  is  of  course  for  his  Excellency 
the  Hospodeen,”  he  added  with  a quiet  but  grim 
significance,  which  the  wily  Cossack  quite  uider- 
stood,  so  he  drained  the  wine  horn  without  further 
objection. 

Soon  after  having  supped,  and  imbibed  his  full 
share  of  the  wine  bottle,  Balgonie  expressed  a de- 
sire for  repose,  as  he  wished  to  depart  by  day- 
break; but  he  had  other  reasons  for  retiring  so 
early.  He  did  not  much  relish  the  society  of  the 
gipsy,  the  Stepniak,  and  the  Corporal  of  Cossacks ; 


96 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


and  he  wished  to  indulge  in  reverie,  to  commune 
with  himself,  and  let  the  current  of  his  thoughts 
run  undisturbed  on  Natalie  and  their  adieux. 

^^This  way,  Excellency,’’  said  Nicholas,  with 
alacrity,  lifting  the  pine  torch  in  its  iron  loutchin, 
and  ushering  him  up  the  stair,  a mere  common  lad- 
der, and  through  the  trap-door  into  the  little  apart- 
ment above,  where  his  couch,  composed  merely  of 
skins  of  the  bear  and  sheep  awaited  him,  and  where 
he  could  see  the  dark  forest  and  the  occasional  stars 
through  a small  window  that  gave  light  and  air  to 
the  place,  which  was  so  limited  in  size,  that  it  some- 
what resembled  a little  cabin  in  a ship. 

Left  in  this  miserable  den  to  his  own  reflections 
and  to  darkness — when  Nicholas  descended  with 
the  pine  torch,  carefully  closed  the  trap-door  and 
secured  it  on  the  lower  side  by  a wooden  bolt, 
moreover,  softly  removing  the  ladder — Charlie 
Balgonie  placed  his  sword  conveniently  at  hand, 
and  cast  himself  upon  the  pile  of  skins  that  were  to 
form  his  bed,  and  thought  he  had  often  fared  worse 
in  the  bivouacs  of  Silesia  and  Bavaria. 

So — he  is  safe,”  said  Nicholas  Paulovitch,  look- 
ing upward  with  a grin  of  savage  satisfaction  at 
the  closed  trap,  as  he  replaced  the  loutchin  on  the 
table,  and  then  closely  scrutinised  the  Corporal, 
whose  eyes  had  already  become  red  and  inflamed. 
Hush ! ” said  Podatchkine,  take  care.” 

Why  ?”  asked  Nicholas,  in  a hoarse  whisper. 


THE  CORPOKAL  IX  HIS  OWX  TRAP. 


97 


Bectose  all  may  not  be  yet  as  you  wish  itj,  and 
in  Russia  sometimes  the  tongue  flays  the  shoulders 
and  cuts  off  the  head.’’ 

True,”  said  the  hitherto  taciturn  Stepniak,  who 
was  carefully  feeling  the  keen  edge  of  his  hatchet ; 

as  the  Tartars  have  it,  ^ when  you  have  spoken  the 
word,  it  rules  over  you;  while  it  is  yet  unspoken, 
you  rule  over  it.’  But  it  seems  to  me  Michail  Po- 
datchkine,  that  you  have  taken  a great  deal  of 
trouble,  and  wasted  much  time  in  the  matter  of  this 
dispatch.  As  you  passed  through  the  forest  to- 
gether, why  the  devil  did  you  not  give  him  a good 
tzchick  ” — (which  we  can  only  render  “ prod  ”) — 
“ in  the  back  with  your  lance  ? ” 

“Because,  if  a wound  is  found  on  him,  folks 
might  say  he  had  been  murdered ; and  he  must  bear 
not  a scar.” 

“And  neither  shall  you,  friend  Podatchkine,” 
said  Paulovitch  with  a cruel  grin. 

“ Come — don’t  make  unpleasant  jests,”  growled 
the  Corporal,  with  a yarn  and  a shudder ; “ wounds 
have  not  been  fashionable  since  Orloff  and  Berni- 
koff  supped  with  Peter  III.” 

“ You  grow  wary  as  you  grow  older  Corporal.” 
“I  have  no  desire  to  travel  with  the  next  cara- 
van to  Siberia,  with  one  side  of  my  head  and  face 
shaved,  and  an  iron  rosary,  some  five  pounds  weight, 
my  wrists.” 

“Fear  not — you  will  never  see  Siberia.” 


98 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


“ Then  you  have  made  all  sure  about  this  Ivan- 
ovitcli  Balgonie  ? ’’  said  Podatchkine,  whose  utter- 
ance was  becoming  somewhat  inarticulate. 

“ Ay,  sure  enough ; the  cups  were ” 

“ The  cups  ! ’’ 

The  cup,  I mean,  was  drugged  with  those  black 
berries  which  grow  in  the  forest  hereabout ; the 
same  stuff  used  by  fine  ladies  to  whiten  their 
hands.’’ 

But  why  the  cup  and  not  the  wine  ? ” 

“ For  this  reason:  I might  ha^e  been  constrained 
to  drink  with  him ; and  I had  no  desfie  to  fall,  like 
some  one  else,  into  a trap  of  my  own  baiting.” 
Podatchkine,  on  whom  the  powerful  soporific 
with  which  his  cup  had  been  drugged — the  sleepy 
nightshade — had  been  rapidly  taking  effect,  and 
whose  small  cunning  eyes  had  been  opening  and 
shutting  alternately,  while  a numbness  stole  with  a 
weariness  over  all  his  faculties,  seemed  suddenly  to 
grasp  at  the  terrible  meaning  of  the  speaker.  He 
gave  a start — he  essayed  to  rouse  himself  and  shout, 
but  in  doing  so,  toppled  off  his  stool,  and  sank  on 
the  clay  fioor  in  a profound  slumber. 

At  last ! ” said  the  half-breed,  administering  a 
kick  to  the  prostrate  figure ; at  last  he  has  gone 
to  sleep ; now  to  make  sure  that  he  shall  never 
waken  more.  Ah ! the  Asiatic  ! he  was  just  getting 
suspicious  at  the  end.” 

There  are  two  kopecs  in  his  pocket/’  said  the 


THK  COKPOEAL  lif  HIS  TEAP. 


99 


Stepniak,  after  investigating  the  garments  of  the 
snorting  Podatchkine,  who  was  now  breathing 
heavily  through  his  red  snub  nose,  which,  between 
his  scrubby  beard  and  his  shock  of  hair,  was  almost 
the  only  feature  of  his  face  that  was  ^dsible. 

Leave  the  kopecs  where  you  found  them  ! ” said 
Nicholas,  with,  a gipsy  oath. 

Wherefore?  ” asked  the  Stepniak  with  surpiise. 

^^It  wih  seem  all  the  more  honest  in  thee,  my 
good  Stepniak,  when  you  take  the  body — bodies,  I 
should  say — to  the  nearest  military  post.  You  have 
but  to  say  you  found  them  dead  in  the  forest.” 

And  the  wet  clothing  ? ” 

^^Dew  or  rain — what  a head  you  have ! ” 

True — true;  ah!  what  a man  you  are,  Nicholas 
Paulovitch,  so  full  of  bright  thoughts  ! That  idea 
would  never  have  occmTed  to  me.” 

Nor  the  other  either.  Quick,  now;  we  have  not 
a moment  to  lose ! ” 

They  extinguished  the  pine  torch,  and  tying  the 
Coi’poral’s  hands  securely  with  a cord,  carried  him 
forth  to  the  draw-well  before  the  cottage.  Then 
they  substituted  that  worthy  warrior’s  heels  for  the 
bucket  which  was  usually  appended  to  the  rope,  and 
permitting  the  winch  to  revolve  softly  and  gently, 
lowered  him  down,  snorting  and  gasping  in  his  un- 
natural slumber,  head  foremost,  into  the  deep  dark 
water  below ! 

The  Stepniak  turned  the  iron  handle  of  the  winch 


100 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


or  windlass,  while  the  gipsy  guided  the  rope  with 
its  heavy  burden.  He  was  deliberately  lowered 
down  until  only  his  heels  remained  above  water,  as 
the  two  wretches  could  see  by  the  starlight  when 
stoopitig  and  peering  Into  the  darkness  below. 

The  snorting  had  ceased  now ! 

The  dying  Corporal  was  heard  to  struggle  with 
his  hands,  as  if  he  sought  to  free  them  from  the 
cords ; a few  bubbles  filled  with  air  rose  to  the  sur- 
face and  burst.  This  continued  for  a minute,  dur- 
ing which  all  was  silent  everywhere,  save  the  half- 
suppressed  breathing  of  the  two  assassins,  and  the 
dreary  sound  of  the  night  wind,  as  it  shook  the 
dark  branches  of  the  giant  pines  that  towered  in 
solemn  gloom  around  them. 

Nicholas  Paulovitch  listened  intently,  and  kept 
his  eyes  fixed  on  the  cottage  where  their  other  vic- 
tim lay,  as  he  doubted  not,  sunk  in  what  was  in- 
tended to  be  his  last  sleep. 

Anon,  all  became  still — deathly  still — in  the 
depths  of  the  dark  well;  the  rope  ceased  to  vibrate, 
and  the  bubbles  came  no  more. 

Let  us  leave  him  here  for  a few  minutes,  and 
now  for  the  Captain  and  his  dispatch!  By  the 
time  that  we  return,  the  Corporal  will  be  as  stiff  as 
if  he  stood  for  sale  in  the  frozen  market  on  the  fete 
of  St.  Nicholas ! ” said  tlie  gipsy,  with  one  of  his 
diabolical  grins;  while  the  Stepniak,  with  a smile  of 
satisfaction  that  showed  all  his  huge  yellow  teeth, 


THE  OORPORAI.  TN  HIS  OWN  TRAP. 


101 


smoothed  down  to  his  eyebrows  the  thick  coarse 
black  hair  that  grew  from  the  apex  of  his  conical 
caput. 

They  now  re-entered  the  cottage,  and  again 
lii>:hted  the  torch  in  its  iron  loutchin.  All  remain- 
ed  just  as  they  had  left  it ; the  quass  pitcher,  the 
wooden  bowls,  the  two  cups,  and  the  empty  wine 
bottle  were  on  th,e  table,  and  the  platters,  with  the 
debris  of  their  rustic  supper ; but  the  superstitious 
gipsy  felt  a species  of  shudder  come  over  him,  for 
when  tlie  torch  flared  up  in  the  night  wind  and  cast 
strange  shadows  on  the  dingy  and  discloured  walls 
of  the  log-hut,  it  seemed  to  his  diseased  imagina- 
tion, for  a moment,  as  if  the  outline  of  the  drowned 
Corporal  still  occupied  the  stool  on  which  he  had 
been  seated. 

Come,”  said  he  huskily,  the  dispatch  ! — and 
then  for  the  other  ! ” 

They  listened  intently,  and  placed  the  ladder 
against  the  trap-door.  All  was  still — not  even  the 
breathing  of  Balgonie  was  heard.  Ascending  first, 
with  a knife  in  his  teeth,  in  case  of  unexpected  re- 
sistance, the  gipsy  knocked  thrice  on  the  trap  with- 
out receiving  any  response.  He  then  withdrew  the 
wooden  bolt,  pushed  it  up,  and  introducing  his  head 
and  shoulders,  held  aloft  the  pine  torch,  and  turned' 
towards  the  bed  of  skins. 

It  was  unoccupied ; and  in  a moment  he  saw  that 
the  bare  and  desolate  chamber  was  without  a tenant! 


102 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Malediction ! ” he  shouted ; “ he  has  escaped  us 
— but  how  ? Search — search  ! He  cannot  be  far 
oif,  after  the  dose  I have  given  him ; search — and 
we  must  use  our  hatchets  now ! ’’ 


CHAPTEK  XL 


OLGA,  THE  GIPSY. 

fIJIALGONIE  had  scarcely  thrown  himself  at 
length  on  the  soft,  but  not  very  odorous, 
pile  of  skins  which  formed  his  couch,  when  a face 
appeared  at  the  little  window,  which  was  pulled 
open,  and  a voice  called  to  him  in  a low  and  earnest 
whisper : 

Hospodeen — Carl  Ivanovitch ! Hospodeen,  at-  ^ 
tend  to  me ; but  oh,  be  silent,  as  you  value  your 
life ! ” 

He  started  up,  softly  approached  the  window, 
and  saw,  by  the  dim  starlight,  a fair  female  face 
with  very  dark  eyes,  white  and  regular  teeth,  and 
long,  glittering  ear-rings. 

I have  seen  this  face  before,”  thought  he ; “ but 
when,  and*where  ? ” 

Balgonie,  in  truth,  was  too  much  of  a lover  to 
have  more  than  one  female  face  ever  before  his 
eyes — that  of  Natalie  Mierowna. 

I am  Olga,  the  gipsy,”  said  the  girl  humbly. 

Olga  ! Olga ! whom  I saw  at  the  house  of  Count 
Mierowitz  this  evening  ? ” 

The  same,  Hospodeen  ! ” (Balgonie  expressed 


104: 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


an  exclamation  of  astonishment  ^o  find  her,  as  he 
thought,  so  far  from  that  place.)  You  gave  me 
a silver  kopec  once  upon  a time,  at  Krejko,  when 
passing  through  that  town  with  Michail  Podatch- 
kine ; and,  this  evening  you  saved  me  from  the  whip 
of  the  dvornick,  when,  for  the  third  time  I had  ven- 
tured near  the  Count’s  mansion,  in  a vain  search  for 
you,  or  the  Hospoza  Mierowna.” 

In  search  of  us — and  for  what  purpose,  girl  ? ” 
To  warn  you,  that  for  nearly  a month  past,  a 
plot  has  been  formed  to  deprive  you  of  a valuable 
paper,  and  even  of  your  life.” 

My  life — when  ? ” 

On  the  first  opportunity.” 

By  whom — and  where,  girl — wliere  ? ” 

Here  in  this  solitary  hut — even  now  your  as- 
sassins are  in  consultation — listen.” 

He  placed  his  ear  to  the  trap-door,  and  heard  the 
murmur  of  hoarse  whispers  below. 

Hush,”  said  Podatchkine,  as  already  related, 
take  care ! ” Then  followed  the  question  of  the 
subtle  and  ferocious  Stepniak,  as  to  why.  he  had  not 
given  Balgonie  a prod  ” with  his  lance  in  the 
forest ; and  the  whole  conversation  in  all  its  horrible 
details,  up  to  the  moment  when  the  wretched  Cor- 
poral with  death  and  terror  mingling  in  his  soul, 
fell  from  his  seat  in  a stupor. 

“ Father  in  heaven ! ” exclaimed  Balgonie,  full  of 
despair  and  horror,  as  he  mechanically  felt  for  his 


OLGA,  THE  GIPSY. 


105 


fatal  dispatch,  to  ascertain  that  it  was  yet  safe,  I 
have  drunk  of  this  drugged  stuff,  and  am  also  lost ! ” 

^^Nay,”  said  the  gipsy,  hurriedly,  nay ’’ 

I drank  the  accursed  wine  from  a cup ’’ 

True ; but  not  from  the  cup  which  was  intended 
for  you.” 

How  ? — speak  ! — speak  ! ” 

The  wine  and  the  cups  too  were  all  stolen  by 
Podatchkine,  with  many  other  things,  at  different 
times,  from  the  household  of  Count  Mierowitz. 
This  night  you  were  duly  expected  here,  and  thus  a 
plan  was  laid  to  destroy  both  you  and  your  treacher- 
ous guide.  Two  cups  were  fully  and  deeply  drugged 
by  my  brother  Nicholas  : one  was  richly  mounted 
wdth  silver ; and  knowing  w^ell  that  it  was  to  be  set 
before  you,  I abstracted  it  barely  an  hour  ago,  sub- 
stituting another  of  the  same  kind,  and  now  I have 
it  here.  Oh,  Hospodeen,  a narrow  escape  you  have 
had!” 

Balgonie  began  to  breathe  more  freely ; but,  as- 
sured that  never  had  he  run  so  narrow  a risk  of 
death,  he  felt,  though  enraged  and  furious,  his  blood 
run  cold,  when  contemplating  the  fate  intended  for 
him.  Peeping  through  a chink  of  the  hatch  or 
trap-door,  he  saw  that  the  ladder  of  access  had  been 
removed,  and  that  tlie  door  of  the  squalid  cottage 
was  open  now,  for  the  loutchin  flared  more  than 
ever  in  the  night  wind.  It  was  then  extinguished; 
but  still  he  could  see  and  liear  them  dragging  forth 


106 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


the  passive  form  of  Corporal  Podatchkine,  whom 
he  supposed  to  be  dead. 

Personally,  Balgonie  felt  that  he  was  no  match 
for  either  of  the  powerful  giants  below — men 
whose  bodily  strength  was  quite  equal  to  their 
ferocity,  and  whose  daggers  and  hatchets  might 
make  mince-meat  of  him.  Moreover,  they  had  now 
deprived  Podatchkine  of  his  sabre  and  loaded  pistols, 
and  were  thus  more  completely  armed.  Charlie  had 
his  hand  on  his  sword — a handsome  Turkish  sabre ; 
but  relinquishing  the  ideas  either  of  attack  or  de- 
fence, while  the  glow  of  rage  rose  in  his  breast  and 
cheek,  he  thought  only  of  immediate  flight. 

‘‘  Tf  you  would  save  your  life  and  the  dispatch  of 
the  Empress,  follow  me  this  instant,  and  get  your 
horse  before  they  return : you  have  not  a moment 
to  lose.” 

It  was  the  gipsy  girl  who  spoke  again,  in  her  low 
earnest  whisper,  and  with  perfect  decision. 

Then  I owe  my  escape — my  safety ” 

To  my  gratitude.  Pass  through  the  window 
and  descend  by  the  wall.” 

“Women,”  says  a certain  philosopher,  “are  not 
at  all  inferior  tp  men  in  coolness  and  courage,  and 
perhaps  much  less  in  resolution  than  is  commonly 
imagined ; the  reason  they  appear  so  is,  because 
women  affect  to  be  more  afraid  than  they  really  are, 
and  men  pretend  to  be  less.” 

Balgonie  found  tliat  the  courageous  girl  to  whoso 


OLOA,  THIS  G^IPgT. 


107 


guidance  lie  now  trusted  himself,  had  been  enabled 
to  reach  the  window  by  standing  on  the  roof  of  the 
outhouse,  or  shed,  in  which  Podatchkine  had  sta- 
bled their  horses.  The  whole  edifice  being  built  of 
squared  logs,  was  not  very  high ; and  it  afforded  easy 
means  of  ascent  and  descent,  by  the  interstices  con- 
sequent to  its  rude  construction  by  the  hatchet. 
He  soon  leaped  to  the  ground,  and  softly  assisted 
her  to  descend. 

Here  is  your  horse  : you  see,  Hospodeen,  that 
your  kindness  to  the  poor  gipsy  girl  was  not  thrown 
away.” 

Balgonie  looked  rapidly  to  his  bit  and  girth, 
adjusted  himself  in  his  saddle,  hooked  up  the  hilt 
of  his  sabre,  and  shortened  his  rein,  almost  unaware 
of  the  black  tragedy  being  so  cooly  and  deliberately 
acted  on  the  other  side  of  the  cottage. 

Ten  versts  farther  from  this  will  bring  you  to 
the  monastery  of  the  Troitza,  which  you  will  know 
by  its  three  domes.  You  have  but  to  ride  straight 
^ westward  by  the  forest  path ; God  keep  you,  and 
may  you  and  the  beautiful  Hospoza  be  happy  in 
your  loves ! ” 

^^Tell  me,  gipsy  girl ” 

Ah,  I can  foretell  nothing,  save  that  in  love 
mere  merit  is  of  little  matter.” 

What  is  of  most  importance — beauty  ? ” 

«Ko.” 

What  then?” 


108 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Success,  Hospodeen.” 

He  almost  laughed,  as  he  slipped  into  her  hand 
two  xervonitz  (the  largest  coins  he  had,)  and  in  a 
moment  more  was  galloping  over  the  soft  grass  of 
the  forest  path  she  had  indicated. 

By  Jove,”  thought  he,  as  he  spurred  on,  I shall 
not  he  sorry  when  this  infernal  dispatch  is  safe  in 
the  hands  of  old  Bernikoff ; and  to  think  of  that 
wretch  of  a Podatchkine ! I always  expected  the 
fellow  to  be  a rogue,  but  not  of  so  deep  a dye  ! ” 

The  unfortunate  Corporal,  now,  as  he  deserved, 
hanging  head  foremost  downward  in  the  draw-well, 
stark  and  stiff  and  cold,  had  been  to  all  appearance 
a good  Russian,  Balgonie  reflected : he  neither  con- 
fessed, fasted,  nor  did  penance  (too  much  bother  all 
that  would  have  been  for  the  Corporal  of  Cossacks) ; 
but  he  kept  Lent  regularly  to  all  appearance  ; made 
a sign  of  the  cross  fussily  before  and  after  every 
meal;  always  went  to  church  when  in  camp  or 
quarters ; and  never  omitted  his  prayers  and  genu- 
flexions at  night,  if  in  haunted  places  or  when  pass- 
ing a wayside  cross,  especially  if  any  one  was  by. 
All  this  w^as  no  doubt  studiously  hypocritical ; and 
Charlie  remembered  that  his  worthy  Uncle  Gam 
kept  Fast-days  and  ‘‘Sabbaths”  with  stern  and 
gloomy  rigour;  that  he  said  a long  and  sonorous 
prayer  before  meals — a longer  prayer  after  them ; 
that  he  went  thrice  daily  to  kirk  at  the  ordained 
periods,  and  liad  nightly  a noisy  expounding  and 


OLGA,  THE  GIPSY. 


109 


out-pouring  of  the  spirit  that  would  have  put  the 
frreat  John  of  Geneva  himself  to  the  blush. 

o 

Ah,”  thought  poor  Charlie,  as  he  trotted  on  his 
lonely  way  through  the  darkened  forest,  decidedly 
there  are  Podatdikines  in  Scotland  as  well  as  else- 
where and  in  Russia.” 

The  light  was  beginning  to  dawn,  for  it  was  the 
morning  of  one  of  the  first  days  of  May,  so  long  had 
he  been  detained  by  illness — shall  we  say  by  love  ? 
— at  the  castle  by  the  Louga,  that  Muscovite  Eden, 
as  now  it  seemed  to  him.  The  birds  were  chirping 
merrily  in  the  woods ; and  in  some  places  he  saw  the 
brown  rocks  shaded  by  a species  of  graceful  silver 
birch  and  dark  rowan  tree,  similar  to  those  that 
grew  in  his  native  strath  at  home. 

By  midsummer  he  knew  that  the  birchen  glades 
he  traversed  would  be  in  full  foliage,  and  that  the 
rowan  berries  would  hang  in  ripe  red  clusters  among 
the  thick  green  leaves ; and  that  there,  too,  would 
be  gray  lichens  on  the  granite  cliffs,  and  in  their 
clefts  soft  emerald  moss,  the  wild  strawberries  and 
the  drooping  bells  of  the  purple  foxglove,  just  as 
he  had  seen  them  where  the  Earn  gurgling  kissed 
her  pebbled  shore  ” as  it  flowed  towards  the  Tay. 

They  seemed  like  old  friends  in  that  strange  place, 
and  with  a sigh  of  gratitude  for  his  escape  from  a 
perilous  and  deadly  snare  was  mingled  one  of  hope 
— a wish — a bootless  wish,  that  one  day  he  might 
sit  by  the  banks  of  the  lovely  Earn  with  Natalie  by 


110 


"ths  secret  eispatch. 


his  side,  amid  all  the  security  his  native  land  af- 
forded, and  under  the  wliite  blooming  hawthorns 
that  cast  their  sweet  fragrance  to  the  soft  winds  of 
the  Perthshire  valley. 

Beloved  i^atalie — so  fair  and  delicate,  so  dark 
haired  and  so  bright-eyed  ! Her  diamond  ring,  and 
still  more  her  lock  of  soft  and  silky  hair,  brought 
all  the  charm  and  sense  of  her  presence  vividly  be- 
fore him.  He  counted  the  brief  hours  since  they 
had  parted,  and  sighed  to  think  how  many  hours 
and  days  and  weeks  must  inevitably  elapse  before 
they  met  again. 

In  memory  and  imagination,  he  conned  over  and 
over  again  each  tender  speech  and  glance,  each 
mute  caress  and  passionate  kiss,  with  every  circum- 
stance and  minutiae  of  their  occurrence  and  bestow- 
al ; and  wdiat  lover  has  not  done  so  since  time  be- 
gan, and  apples  grew,  and  roses  bloomed  in  Eden! 
Even  liis  recent  narrow  escape,  and  the  gipsy’s  grati- 
tude were  forgotten  in  the  ardor  of  liis  thoughts. 

And  he  sighed  again,  when  thinking  how  wild 
and  insane  were  the  dreams  in  which  he  was  indulg- 
ing, as  he  touched  his  horse  with  tlie  spurs,  on  seeing 
the  three  shining  do:nes  of  the  Troitza,  or  monas- 
tery of  the  Holy  Trinity,  rise  before  him  amid  the 
green  woodlands. 


CHAPTEE  XII. 


ST.  PETERSBUKG. 

FTEE  traversing  a green  valley  some  five  or 
or  six  miles  in  length,  bordered  on  each  side 
by  forests  of  fir  trees,  dark,  solemn  and  acutely 
conical,  where  the  sunlight  could  scarcely  ever  pene- 
trate to  the  thick  rank  grass  and  herbage  that  grew 
below,  and  where  a merry  gurgling  brook  rushed 
noisely  along  by  the  side  of  the  narrow  horseway, 
Charlie  Balgonie  drew  his  bridle  at  the  gates  of  the 
Troitza  monastery,  when  its  white  walls,  its  three 
great  cupolas,  shaped  each  like  a gigantic  onion  in- 
verted, covered  with  plates  of  burnished  copper,  and 
all  painted  and  bestarred,  were  shining  gaily  in  the 
morning  sun. 

There  he  was  made  welcome  by  the  monks — 
quaint-looking  men,  in  long  black  caftans,  with  high 
black  caps,  fashioned  like  our  modern  hats,  but 
without  brims,  and  having  black  veils  floating  be- 
hind over  their  long,  straight  hair.  He  deposited 
some  money  with  the  treasurer,  declined  the  invita- 
tion of  the  sacristan  to  see  tlie  uncorrupted  bcdy  of 
some  saint  with  an  unpronounceable  name,  reposing 
in  its  shrine  like  a silver  bedstead,  and  its  head  be- 
lli 


112 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


girt  by  a diadem  with  pearls  as  large  as  pisfol  bul- 
lets; for  the  saint  had  been  a martyr,  w^ho,  in  the 
day;s  of  Ivan  Basilovitch,  the  Barters  had  rewarded 
for  his  attempts  to  convert  them  by  knocking  out 
his  brains ; and  now  he  was  a miserable  mummified 
relic  of  humanity,  before  which,  for  many  ages, 
thousands  of  devotees  had  knelt  and  wept  and  smote 
their  breasts  in  paroxysms  of  prayer.  Charlie 
waived  the  invitation;  and  after  having  a good 
breakfast  in  the  refectory,  and  there  telling  his  story 
to  the  monks,  he  was  somewhat  bewildered  when 
informed  by  them,  that  after  all  his  (certainly  cir- 
cuitous) journey  with  Podatchkine  on  the  preceding 
evening  and  night,  and  after  his  riding  since  he  had 
left  the  cottage  of  the  gipsy,  he  was  still  barely 
twenty  miles  from  the  Louga ! 

Was  a spell  cast  upon  him?  was  his  horse  be- 
witched, that  he  was  to  continue  travelling  thus,  and 
yet  never  make  progress  ? It  almost  seemed  so ; 
but  one  of  the  monks,  a more  shrewd  man  than  his 
brothers,  explained  the  whole  affair  as  being  conse- 
quent to  the  cunning  of  Po  latchkine,  and  his  scheme 
for  destroying  the  dispatch-bearer. 

A large  party  of  pilgrims  on  horse  and  foot  were 
returning  to  St.  Petersburg  that  afternoon.  With 
them  Balgonie  travelled  for  the  remainder  of  his 
journey;  and,  after  traversing  a wild  and  desert 
tract  of  country,  on  the  evening  of  the  next  day  he 
had  the  pleasure  of  beholding,  in  the  distance  before 


6T.  PETERSBURG. 


113 


him,  that  new  but  vast  and  splendid  capital, — 

‘ " Proud  city  ! Sovereign  mother  thou 
Of  all  Sclavonian  cities  now/" — 

covering  the  once  wild  waste  wliereon,  before  the 
time  of  Peter  the  Great,  the  father  of  his  country, 
a few  wretched  fishermen  were  wont  to  contend 
wdth  the  wolves  and  bears  for  a spot  to  erect  their 
huts — where,  as  Count  Segur  says,  winter  reigned 
for  eight  months  of  the  year,  rye  was  an  article  of 
garden  culture,  and  a bee-hive  a curiosity. 

Its  bulbous-shaped  Byzantine  domes,  and  tall 
needle-like  spires,  and  all  its  countless  roofs,  that 
rose  beyond  each  other  in  ridgy  succession  like  the 
waves  of  the  sea,  and  are  generally  like  the  sea  in 
colour,  being  of  a brilliant  green  or  an  ashy  hue, 
were  now  all  tinted  redly  by  the  rays  of  the  setting 
sun,  which  cast  the  shadows  of  its  many  bridges  on 
the  waters  of  the  Neva  and  of  the  canals  that  glided 
silently  and  darkly  beneath  them. 

As  the  sun  sank  beyond  the  GuK  of  Finland,  and 
the  shadows  deepened  on  every  plated  dome  and 
granite  rampart,  the  great  gilt  crosses  of  our  Lady 
of  Kazan  (a  fane  which  was  ten  years  in  building) 
and  of  many  other  noble  churches  glittered,  or 
rather  seemed  to  burn  like  stars,  amid  the  deep  blue 
of  the  cloudless  sky  beyond. 

Balgonie’s  satisfaction,  on  finding  himself  so  near 
the  end  of  his  journey,  was  somewhat  clouded  by  a 
trivial  circumstance. 


114 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


After  entering  the  city  by  a palisaded  barrier, 
where  stood  a guard  of  the  Kegiment  of  Yalikolutz, 
he  checked  his  horse’s  pace,  while  the  caravan  of 
pilgrims,  whom  he  now  wished  to  quit,  traversed  a 
long  street  of  small  wooden  houses  that  lay  beyond. 
Here,  close  by  the  margin  of  the  Neva,  lay  a man 
with  his  loose  caftan  wet  and  dripping,  and  a piece 
of  sack  or  old  canvas  spread  over  his  face.  On  liis 
breast  lay  his  fur  cap,  as  if  to  receive  alms  for  his 
burial;  for  none  doubted  that  he  was  a poor 
drowned  fellow  just  fished  up  from  the  Neva,  and 
that  money  was  required  of  the  religious  and 
charitable  alike  for  his  obsequies  and  masses  for 
the  repose  of  his  soul.  So  all  the  pilgrims  from 
the  Troitza  threw  something  into  the  fur  cap, 
where  denuscas,  kopecs,  even  roubles  and  Polish 
ducats,  jingled  fast  together,  while  the  passers 
muttered  prayers  and  made  signs  cf  the  cross. 

All  the  caravan  had  passed ; so  the  clatter  of 
Balgonie’s  charger,  steel-scabbard,  and  accoutre- 
ments, seemed  to  create  a different  effect  on  the 
attentive  ear  of  the  seemingly  drowned  man ; for 
the  knave,  who  had  only  been  acting,  started  up, 
and,  with  his  spoil,  fled  like  a hare  down  one  of  the 
little  alleys  that  opened  off  the  wooden  street.  He 
vanished  in  the  twilight,  yet  not  so  quickly  but 
that  Balgonie  was  able  to  recognise  in  his  face  and 
form,  the  bulky  and  muscular  half-bred,  the  gipsy, 
Nicholas  Pauldvitclu 


ST.  PETERSBURG. 


115 


What  had  brought  him  to  St.  Petersburg  ? AVas 
he  still  dogging  the  luckless  dispatch-bearer,  or  had 
he  only  fled  thither  that,  among  its  thousands,  he 
might  elude  the  punishment  with  which  Count 
Micro witz  would  be  sm-e  to  visit  him,  if  the  murder 
of  the  Corporal  was  discovered  ? 

This  episode  made  Balgonie  feel  uncomfortable, 
and  suspicious  that  other  and  hidden  dangers  yet 
menaced  him,  as  he  rode  steadily  but  watchfully 
through  the  densely  crowded,  but  monotonously 
regular  streets  of  houses,  which  are  stuccoed  white- 
washed, and  decorated  with  different  colours,  roofed 
with  wood  and  iron,  painted  in  most  instances 
green,  and  nearly  all  pillared  and  piazzaed — each 
long  vista,  with  its  oil  lamps,  being  terminated  by 
domes  and  spires ; and  ere  long  he  saw  the  lights 
shining  in  the  lofty  windows  of  that  magnificent 
crescent,  which,  for  a time,  was  the  palace  of 
Catharine’s  most  cherished  favourite,  ^^the  fair- 
faced Lanskoi,”  as  Byron  has  it — 

A lover  who  had  cost  her  many  a tear, 

And  yet  hut  made  a middling  Grenadier.^’ 

And  now  the  melodious  bells  were  ringing  for 
vespers  in  the  towers  of  our  Lady  of  Kazan — a 
Greek  cruciform  fane,  which  w^as  founded  as  a rival 
to  St.  Peter’s  at  Borne,  and  named  after  the  Tartar 
kingdom  of  Kazan.  It  is  the  greatest  church  in 
the  city,  and  one  of  high  sanctity. 

Along  the  northern  margin  of  the  Keva,  a river 


116 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


broad  as  the  Thames  at  London  Bridge,  but  (un- 
like the  Thames)  deep,  blue,  and  transparent  as 
crystal,  lined  with  solid  granite  quays,  and  bordered 
by  many  stately  palatial  edifices,  Balgonie  pursued 
his  way ; but  the  stars  were  shining  at  midnight  on 
the  vast  sheet  of  water  called  the  Lake  of  Ladoga, 
before  he,  weary  and  worn  with  fatigue,  dismounted 
beneath  the  formidable  gates  of  the  castellated 
prison  of  Schlusselburg,  which  had  been  strength- 
ened and  fortified  anew  by*  General  Count  Todle- 
ben,  whose  arrest  and  quarrel  with  the  Empress 
had  made  so  much  noise  three  years  before  the 
time  our  story  opens. 


OHAPTEE  XIII, 


WHAT  THE  SECRET  DISPATCH  CONTAINED. 

WENTY-FOUR  miles  eastward  of  the  city, 
the  small  town  and  fortress  of  Schlusselburg 
stand,  at  a point  where  the  Neva  issues  from  the 
Lake  of  Ladoga,  and  on  the  left  bank  of  the  river. 
The  little  town  had  then  somewhere  about  three 
thousand  inhabitants,  who  chiefly  lived  by  the  manu- 
facture of  cotton  and  porcelain. 

On  an  island,  where,  the  river  joins  the  lake  and 
moats  it  round,  is  built  the  fort,  which  is  about  four 
hundred  yards  square  : its  walls  are  of  stone,  mas- 
sive, and  fifty  feet  in  height,  terminating  in  battle- 
ments and  turrets  of  antique  form. 

The  passage  to  this  island  is  by  a long  draw-bridge. 

The  guard  which  kept  this  formidable  state  prison, 
where  many  a hopeless  sigh  was  wafted  through  the 
rusty  bars  of  its  prison  grilles  across  the  waters  of 
Ladoga,  was  composed  entirely  of  a body  of  dis- 
mounted Cossacks,  selected  for  the  purpose,  as  the 
task  of  keeping  or  secluding  the  dethroned  Em- 
peror Ivan  was  one  of  no  small  responsibility  and 
importance ; so  these  men  were  all  Cossacks  of  a 
high  class,  and  were  rather  richly  dressed. 

117 


118 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Their  short  blue  jackets  were  elaborately  em- 
broidered with  yellow  lace,  and  a multitude  of  gilt 
buttons,  but  were  hooked  across  the  chest ; their 
trowsers  of  scarlet  cloth  were  loose,  long,  and 
gathered  into  their  boots,  which  were  of  brown 
Eussian  leather,  and  reached  to  six  inches  above 
the  ankle.  Their  busbies  of  black  shining  fur  had 
bright  scarlet  bags,  tall  white  feathers,  a cockade, 
and  tasselled  cord.  They  were  all  clean  and 
soldier-like  men,  well  moustached,  and  sternly  reso^ 
lute  in  bearing ; and  all  were  armed  with  musket- 
oons,  short  sabres,  and  brass  pistols. 

A guard  of  these  men  received  Balgonie  at  the 
gate  and  drawbridge  with  a profound  military  sa- 
lute ; and  a picturesque  aspect  they  presented,  as 
their  arms  flashed  in  the  murky  light  of  the  great 
oil  lantern  that  swung  in  the  dark,  weird,  and  deep- 
mouthed  archway,  where  a massive  port-cullis 
showed  its  iron  teeth,  all  red  and  rusted  by  the 
mists  of  the  Neva  and  the  stormy  blasts  that  swept 
across  the  Lake  of  Ladoga. 

The  great  masses  of  the  fortress,  ghostly  and 
shrouded,  with  faint  red  lights  gleaming  out  here 
and  there ; the  enormous  strength  of  the  gates,  their 
planking,  bolts,  and  bars ; the  thickness  of  the 
walls ; the  number  of  embrasures  and  loop-holes  for 
cannon  and  musketry,  all  converging  to  one  point, 
the  approach  or  river  entrance ; the  number  of  sen- 
tinels, and,  more  than  all,  the  vast  strength  of  the 


WHAT  THE  SECRET  DISPATCH  CONTAINED.  119 


portcullis  and  double  gates,  together  with  the  diffi- 
culties he  experienced  in  procuring  admission, 
though  in  uniform,  and  though  a staff  officer  bear- 
ing a dispatch  of  the  Empress,  all  served  to  impress 
unpleasantly  on  the  mind  of  Charlie  Balgonie  a 
state  of  extreme  watchfulness,  of  suspicion,  and 
mistrust ; and  also  a sense  of  vast  responsibility 
of  the  charge  confided  by  Catharine  to  Colonel 
Bernikoff. 

That  gallant  officer  and  estimable  personage  had 
retired  long  since,  after  a deep  drinking  bout,  and 
would  be — as  Lieutenant  Tschekin  (the  son-in-law 
of  General  Weymarn),  who  was  third  in  command 
of  the  fortress,  informed  Balgonie — quite  invisible 
till  breakfast  time  to-morrow,  when  the  dispatch 
would  be  delivered  to  him : and  a sigh  of  real  an- 
noyance escaped  Charlie,  when  he  found  that  this 
odious  paper  was  to  be  yet  some  eight  hours  or 
more  in  his  secret  pocket. 

He  repaired  to  the  officers’  guard-room  at  the 
^barrier  gate,  and  there,  wrapped  in  his  cloak,  with- 
out undressing  (as  he  hoped  next  day  to  exchange 
the  atmosphere  of  Schlusselburg  for  that  of  some 
hotel  in  the  Yasili-Ostrov),  lay  down  to  sleep,  and  if 
possible  to  dream  of  Natalie ; but  he  had  undergone 
too  much  toil  for  such  gentle  phantasms,  so  he  slept 
like  a dormouse,  till  the  sun  was  high  in  heaven, 
unawakened  even  by  the  deep  boom  of  the  morning 
gun,  a 36-pounder,  as  it  pealed  across  the  Lake  of 


120  THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 

•V 

Ladogo ; but  nltimately  he  was  roused  by  Tschekin 
and  Captain  Ylasflef,  a very  handsome  young  man, 
but  a cruel  and  heartless  roue^  whom  ultimately  he 
detested.  These,  after  shaking  him  heartily,  an- 
nounced that  Colonel  Bernikoff  awaited  him  at 
breakfast,  and  was  not  in  a mood  to  brook  much 
delay. 

His  hasty  toilette  was  soon  complete,  and  he  was 
speedily  ushered  into  a plain,  almost  naked  white- 
washed apartment  arched  with  stone.  Through  its 
grated  windows  the  morning  sun  shone  cheerily,  and 
the  blue  waters  of  the  lake  could  be  seen  with  the 
white  sails  of  many  a tiny  coasting  vessel. 

Here,  at  a table  of  plain  Memel  timber,  destitute 
of  cloth,  but  on  which  massive  silver  vessels  with 
rudely  formed  wooden  bowls  and  platters  were 
oddly  intermingled,  was  seated  the  Governor,  who, 
like  the  czars  and  boyars  of  old,  still  took  quass  for 
breakfast  with  roasted  beef  or  bear’s  ham,  bread 
with  caviare,  greens  with  vinegar,  salted  plums  and 
other  abominations.  But  Balgonie  saw  that  coffee 
' and  even  tea,  with  ham,  eggs,  and  kippered  salmon, 
were  prepared,  with  other  condiments,  for  those 
who,  like  himself,  had  nothing  of  the  Tartar  in  their 
blood. 

Hail  to  you — I wish  you  health,”  said  Berni- 
koff, courteously  enough,  in  the  old  Russian  fashion, 
and  presenting  his  hand  to  Charlie,  who  took  it, 
shuddering  as  he  remembered  the  fate  of  Peter 


WHAT  THE  SECRET  DISPATCH  CONTAINED.  121 


III.;  welcome  to  Schlusselburg,  Captain  Ivano- 
vitch  Balgonie.” 

Bernikoff,  who  wore  a dark-green  undress  uniform 
faced  with  scarlet,  was  a man  well  up  in  years ; he 
had  fierce  and  shining  black  eyes  that  made  soldier 
and  serf  alike  quail  beneath  their  gaze ; yet  they 
were  small,  cunning,  and  twinkling  eyes,  the  lashes 
of  which  were  lialf  closed — the  eyes  of  one  who 
could  act  the  cruel  tyrant  on  one  hand,  and  the 
cringing  slave  on  the  other.  He  had  a massive, 
square,  and  brutal  jaw,  thin  wicked  lips,  a nose  as 
round  as  a grape-shot,  close  short  grizzled  hair,  and 
long  snaky  mustachioes. 

He  was  of  Tartar  blood,  aifd  came  of  those 
warlike  and  merciless  tribes  who  studied  nothing 
but  the  use  of  arms;  who  passed  their  lives  on 
horseback ; who  even  lived  on  their  horses  in  this 
sense,  that  their  chief  food  was  horsefiesh  and  the 
milk  of  mares ; who,  at  the  same  time,  could  go  for 
days  without  food ; and  who,  when  they  took  a city 
by  storm,  put  all  the  inhabitants  to  the  sword  ex- 
cept the  working  men.” 

Seat  yourself,  Captain,  and  proceed  to  break- 
fast, while  I read  your  dispatch,”  said  the  Governor. 

Holy  Sergius ! it  is  from  Catharine  Christianow- 
na  herself ! The  Czarina  is  great,  but  Heaven  is 
higher ! ” he  -added,  placing  the  paper  on  his  fore- 
head, as  he  bowed  over  it ; and  then  taking  an 
enormous  pinch  of  Beresovski  snuff,  a most  pungent 


122 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


compound,  from  a gold  box  said  to  have  been  found 
in  the  pocket  of  Peter  IIL,  he  proceeded  to  peruse 
that  document  which  had  proved  of  such  trouble  to 
the  bearer. 

The  eyes  of  Balgonie,  Tschekin,  and  Vlasfief,  who 
alone  were  present,  were  fixed  inquiringly  upon 
him,  and  they  could  see  that  the  contents  distm^bed 
him  greatly ; he  grew  pale  and  flushed  by  turns ; 
his  brows  contracted  to  a terrible  frown;  a red 
spark  of  devilish  light  glittered  in  his  eyes,  and  his 
lips  were  compressed. 

Ah,  the  Asiatics ! the  accursed  Asiatics  ! ” he 
muttered.  This  is  a most  opprobrious  epithet  in 
Russia,  and  excited  some  surprise  in  his  hearers. 

He  carefully  folded  the  dispatch,  and  turning 
sternly  to  Cliarlie,  who  was  keeping  his  eyes  on  him 
and  drinking  his  coffee  the  while,  he  said : — 

Ivanovitch  Balgonie,  there  is  a feather  in  the 
seal — the  usual  sign  of  haste  among  us  here  in 
Russia ; yet  you  have  not  troubled  yourself  much 
with  speed,  for  this  dispatch  is  dated  at  Novgorod 
more  than  a month  back  ! ’’ 

Permit  me  to  explain.  Excellency,’’  said  Bal- 
gonie eagerly,  and  anxiously  too. 

I shall  be  glad  if  you  can  explain  it,”  replied 
Bernikoff,  with  increasing  sternness.  I have  known 
a general,  a leader  in  ten  battles,  degraded,  knouted, 
and  sent  to  hunt  the  ermine  with  a cannon  ball  at 
his  heels  for  a smaller  dereliction  of  duty  than  this.” 


WHAT  THE  SEOKET  DISPATCH  CONTAINED.  123 

Balgonie’s  heart  beat  very  fast  while  he  related 
his  story — of  his  being  misled  by  a traitor  twice; 
of  the  passage  of  the  Louga  at  such  terrible  hazard; 
of  his  subsequent  illness ; and  the  episode  at  that 
log  hut. 

‘^  That  you  were  in  the  guidance  of  a traitor, 
I knew  before  your  arrival ; and  I am  extremely 
glad  that  he  fell  into  his  own  snare,”  replied  Berni- 
koff,  a little  more  calmly ; but  this  matter  is  ex- 
tremely awkward  for  you,  and  becomes  more  com- 
plicated every  hour.” 

After  glancing  again  at  the  dispatch,  and  bending 
his  keen  rat-like  eyes  on  Balgonie,  he  asked : 

W ere  Basil  Mierowitz  or  Bsakoif,  the  grandson 
of  Mazeppa,  at  the  Castle  of  Louga  any  time  during 
your  sojourn  there  ? ” 

“ No,  Excellency,  neither  of  them  were.” 

Spies-  say  differently — but  you  can  swear  it 
On  my  honour  do  I swear  it ! But  why  ? ” 

“ I have  had  bad  news  from  the  head-quarters  of 
your  regiment,  and  from  Lieutenant-General  Wey- 
marn,  since  you  left  Novgorod.” 

And  these  tidings.  Excellency  ? ” 

“ Are  to  the  effect  that  your  friends,  the  two 
subalterns,  have  both  deserted,  with  several  soldiers, 
all  of  whom  are  natives  of  the  Ukraine.” 

Deserted ! ” 

And  are  nowhere  to  be  found,  though  pursued 
by  a whole  sotnia  of  Cossacks.” 


124  THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 

Deserted  ! ” reiterated  Balgonie  with  real  con- 
cern. 

Yes — the  cursed  Asiatics  ! ” replied  Bernikoff, 
expectorating  with  great  vehemence,  and  thoroughly 
believing  that  each’  time  he  did  so  he  cast  out  a 
devil. 

For  some  moments  intense  anxiety  and  alarm  be- 
wildered Balgonie,  and  he  felt  himself  grow  pale  at 
a time  when  six  searching  eyes  were  bent  with  a 
doubtful  expression  upon  him.  He  remembered 
the  hostility,  the  threatening  and  mysterious  words 
of  Natalie,  and  grew  almost  sick  with  apprehension 
of  he  knew  not  what,  as  he  muttered  inaudibly — 

Basil  deserted — and  his  cousin  too  ! The  whole 
family  will  be  inculpated  and  degraded.  Oh,  Nata- 
lie, miy  hapless  love ! Did  General  Weymarn  state 
this  in  his  dispatch  ? ” lie  asked  aloud. 

He  did,  and  at  its  end  referred  to  you.” 

To  me,  Excellency  ? ” 

Yes;  here  is  the  document,  and  it  concludes 
thus:  ^as  I and  the  Begiment  of  Smolensko  will 
shortly  march  into  St.  Petersburg,  Captain  Carl 
Ivanovitch  Balgonie  need  not  return  to  Novgorod  ; 
but,  until  then,  shall  attach  himself  to  your  staff,  and 
remain  in  Schlusselburg,  where,  ere  long,  you  may 
require  all  the  good  service  he  can  render  you. — 
Weymarx.’” 

Great  were  the  mortification  and  disgust  of  Bal- 
gonie on  learning  that  he  was  to  reipain  for  an  in- 


WHAT  THE  SEOEET  DISEATCH  CONTAINED.  125 

definite  period  in  a place  so  revolting  and  uncom- 
fortable, and  with  no  other  society  than  that  of  three 
military  jailers, — cruel,  hard-hearted,  and  avaricious 
Muscovites  of  the  worst  kind ; and  with  these  orders 
died  his  hopes  of  revisiting,  as  he  intended,  Louga, 
on  his  return,  and  of  seeing  Natalie  again. 

Under  ban  as  all  the  household  of  Mierowitz 
would  be  now,  should  he  ever  see  her  more  ? Every 
way  fate  and  the  tide  of  events  seemed  to  be  against 
him  and  her,  already  in  the  very  dawn  of  their  love. 

And  now,  gentlemen,’’  said  the  Governor,  low- 
ering his  voice,  the  Empress’s  dispatch  contains 
only  two  lines,  thus : ^ A scheme  is  formed  to  free 
Prince  Ivan.  Let  him  not  fall  alive  into  the  hands 
of  these  who  come  to  seek  for  him  ! ’ Nor  shall  he ! ” 
exclaimed  Bernikoff  with  ferocious  enthusiasm,  as 
he  dashed  a cup  of  vodka  among  his  quass,  and 
drained  the  goblet,  after  shouting,  The  health  of 
Her  Imperial  Majesty  Catharine  Ohristianowna — - 
hurrah ! ” 

Hurrah,  hurrah  ! ” added  Ylasfief  and  the  Lieu- 
tenant. 

Balgonie  also,  as  in  duty  bound,  essayed  to  hm’- 
rah,”  but  the  sound  died  away  on  his  lips. 


CHAPTER  Xiy. 


Charlie’s  first  day  m Schlusselburg-. 

Full  of  anxious  thoughts,  he  passed  more  than 
half  of  the  succeeding  day  on  the  ramparts 
of  the  castled-prison,  alone,  avoiding  Colonel  Berni- 
koff,  Captain  Ylasfief,  and  their  subaltern,  Tschekin, 
none  of  whom  were  consonant  to  his  taste,  for  all 
were  deep  gamblers  and  heavy  drinkers. 

His  mind  was  full  of  care  for  Natalie  and  all  her 
family.  Some  desperate  and  revengeful  plot,  of 
which  the  desertion  of  her  brother  and  of  his  cousin 
Usakoff  was  but  the  beginning,  the  means  to  an  end, 
was  certainly  hatching — a plot  that  might  too  surely 
end  in  bloodshed,  in  the  savage  punishment  and  the 
ruin  of  all. 

He  sorrowed  keenly  for  his  two  friends  Basil  Mi- 
cro witz  and  Apollo  Usakoff,  for  both  were  polished 
and  educated  gentlemen,  men  of  a class  and  style 
more  common  in  some  corps  of  the  Russian  army 
now  than  in  those  days.  And  there  was  poor 
Mariolizza,  too — so  brightly  beautiful,  so  happy, 
and  so  merry ! Her  love,  her  hopes  and  schemes, 
would  all  be  crushed  and  blighted,  as  well  as  his 
own. 

12^ 


Charlie’s  first  day  in  sohluesselbug^.  12l 

Balgonie  was  not  without  fears  for  himself,  and 
of  being  compromised  in  the  affair ; or  perhaps, 
lured  into  subtle  state  intrigues  and  deep  plots,  in 
the  failure  or  success  of  which  he  could  have  no  in- 
terest politically  or  personally,  save  in  his  love  for 
Natalie — a love  that  had  changed  the  whole  current 
of  his  ideas  and  opened  up  a new  realm  of  thought 
and  incentive  to  action. 

Already  he  was  beginning  to  revolt  at  the  Kns** 
sian  service,  and  yet  he  had  been  happy  in  the  Regi- 
ment of  Smolensko,  and  had  found  in  the  land  of 
his  adoption,  like  every  Scottish  adventurer  that  has 
trod  the  Russian  soil,  honours  scarcely  to  be  won  at 
home. 

How  long  was  he  to  be  on  the  staff  of  this  fero- 
cious Commandant,  and  in  this  horrrible  prison, 
where  many  an  innocent  victim  was  pining  hope- 
lessly in  chains  and  misery  ? “ The  mutual  dis- 

trust in  which  people  live  in  Russia,”  says  the 
Abbe  Chappe  D’Auteroche  in  his  scarce  travels 
about  this  time,  ^^and  the  total  silence  of  the 
nation  upon  everything  which  may  have  the  least 
relation  either  to  the  government  or  the  sovereign, 
arise  chiefly  from  the  privilege  every  Russian  has, 
without  distinction,  of  crying  out  in  public,  slowo 
dielo ; that  is  say,  ^ I declare  you  are  guilty  of 
high  treason,  both  in  words  and  actions.’  All  the 
bystanders  are  then  obliged  to  assist  in  arresting 
the  person  so  accused ; a father,  his  son,  and  the 


128 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


son  his  father,  while  nature  suffers  in  silence.  The 
accuser  and  accused  are  at  once  conveyed  to  prison, 
and  afterwards  to  St.  Petersburg,  where  they  are 
tried  by  the  Secret  Court  of  Chancery.” 

Thanks  to  this  pleasant  state  of  society,  the 
chambers  and  chains  of  Schlusselburg  were  seldom 
unoccupied. 

Ylasfief  was  hollow-hearted,  avaricious,  and  sen- 
sual ; Tschekin,  the  Lieutenant,  a slimy,  cruel,  reck- 
less, and  ignorant  Muscovite  ; but  old  Bernikoff  was 
really  a character  whom  Balgonie  equally  dreaded 
and  despised. 

His  subtlety  and  oppression  had  been  the  means 
of  reducing,  at  different  times,  some  thirty  officers 
to  the  ranks,  with  permission  to  serve  and  work 
their  way  up  again ; and  many  more  were  now 
cursing  him  and  their  fate,  at  Irkutsk  and  remoter 
Siberia,  for  their  inability  to  purchase  his  mercy 
or  good-will.  When  commanding  at  Cronstadt,  he 
had  been  detected  once  in  the  act  of  transmitting 
whole  sledge  loads  of  government  shot,  shell,  lead, 
and  ropes,  across  the  frozen  gulf  for  sale  in  Sweden ; 
and  also  in  buying  at  a cheap  rate  base  denuscas  to 
pay  the  troops : but  so  trusted  was  the  old  rascal 
by  the  Empress,  that  he  always  escaped  the  degre- 
dation,  the  hanging  or  shooting,  which,  on  those 
discoveries,  were  so  freely  meted  out  to  his  sub- 
alterns. 

On  the  estate  of  Bernikoff  a serf  once  amassed 


Charlie’s  first  day  m schlusselburo.  129 

ten  thousand  roubles,  and  offered  them  for  the 
freedom  of  his  daughter,  who  was  about  to  be 
married. 

Let  me  see  the  girl ! ” was  the  reply. 

As  a serf  can  possess  nothing,  the  father  trem- 
bled in  his  soul  at  this  demand ; as  his  daughter,  un- 
fortunately for  herself,  was  beautiful. 

Holy  Sergius  ! ” exclaimed  Bernikoff,  what 
business  has  a serf  with  ten  thousand  roubles ; the 
girl  and  the  money  are  alike  mine ! ” 

And  so  he  literally  and  lawfully  seized  them  both. 
Though  a savage  soldier,  like  every  old  Musco- 
vite, he  was  the  slave  of  mechanical  devotion.  No 
statue  or  pietm’e  of  the  Holy  Virgin,  of  St.  Sergius, 
or  St.  Alexander  Newski,  was  ever  passed  by  him 
without  a profound  reverence  and  a sign  of  the 
cross.  To  such  eflSgies  he  would  address  himself 
before  he  knelt  even  to  the  Empress : and  before 
them  he  had  been  known  to  kneel  and  kiss  the 
ground  five  minutes  before  or  after  he  had  knouted 
a miserable  boor  (whose  pockets  were  empty),  or 
nearly  slain  a soldier  by  making  him  run  the  gaunt- 
let, for  merely  having  the  seams  of  his  gloves 
sewn  outward  instead  of  in  ; for  wearing  his  hat  on 
the  left  side  of  his*  head  instead  of  the  right ; or 
for  some  other  offence  equally  heinous. 

And  it  was  on  the  staff  of  this  distinguished 
officer  (temporarily,  however)  that  Charlie  now,  to 
his  great  disgust,  found  himself. 


130 


THE  SECRET  DISTATCS. 


On  three  sides,  far  around  this  island  prison, 
stretched  the  waters  of  Ladoga — the  largest  lake  in 
Europe,  being  one  hundred  and  thirty  miles  long, 
by  nearly  ninety  broad ; full  of  rocky  isles  and 
dangerous  quicksands,  over  which,  from  its  flat 
shores,  sweep  frequent  and  perilous  storms. 

From  the  somewhat  dreary  view  of  this  small  in- 
land sea,  whose  northern  and  eastern  coast  could 
not  be  discerned,  he  turned  to  survey  the  fortress, 
with  all  its  strength  of  gloomy  walls,  grated  win- 
dows, and  frowning  cannon,  till  suddenly  his  eye 
was  arrested  by  a very  remarkable  face,  which 
was  observing  him  from  the  sombre  depth  of  a 
strongly  barred  and  arched  window  of  the  great 
tower. 

It  was  a pale  face,  but  singularly  handsome — 
grave,  and  even  sad  in  expression — a young  man’s 
face  with  the  slightest  indication  of  a moustache, 
but  for  which,  in  its  paleness  and  extreme  delicacy 
of  feature  and  tint,  it  might  have  passed  for  that  of 
a twin  brother  of  Natalie  Mierowna ! 

Suddenly  it  was  detected  by  a Cossack  sentinel, 
who  shouted  shrilly,  and  slapped  the  but-end  of 
his  loaded  musketoon : on  this,  the  face  instantly 
disappeared. 

This  was  he  concerning  whom  Balgonie  had 
brought  that  terrible  dispatcli — Ivan,  the  deposed 
Emperor — the  prisoner  of  Schlusselburg  ! 

‘‘  Twenty-three  years ! ” thought  Balgonie  with  a 


Charlie’s  first  day  in  sChlhsselburg.  131 

shudder  ; twenty-tliree  years  in  that  tower — since 
his  very  babyhood — oh,  it  is  terrible  ! ” 

Other  ears  had  heard  the  shout  of  the  sentinel ; 
for  now  a man,  who  in  a boat  had  been  fishing  near 
the  fortress,  suddenly  shipped  a pair  of  sculls  and 
pulled  away  towards  the  town  with  an  air  of  alarm 
that  seemed  equalled  only  by  his  dexterity.  This 
fisher  had  been  hovering  about  the  fortress  all  day. 

Can  he  be  the  gipsy — the  half-breed  ? ” thought 
Charlie : ah ! the  dispatch  is  out  of  my  liands 

now.” 

Lieutenant  Tscheldn  now  approached  with  an  in- 
vitation from  Bernikoff  to  join  him  at  dinner,  add- 
ing, “ Remember  that  with  the  Colonel,  eating  is  in- 
deed a science ; and  temperance  he  views  as  mere 
want  of  spirit.” 

As  they  proceeded  together  through  various  arch- 
ways and  gates,  the  shrieks  and  entreaties  of  a man 
apparently  in  mortal  agony  rang  through  the  echo- 
ing prisons  with  a horrible  cadence,  that  chilled  the 
free  blood  in  Balgonie’s  veins. 

A court  through  which  they  had  to  pass  was 
crowded  by  soldiers,  formed  in  hollow  square,  and 
Balgonie  was  compelled  to  linger  and  look  on  with 
Tschekin,  who  seemed  rather  to  enjoy  the  spectacle. 

Hah,”  said  he,  the  punishment  is  nearly  ended 
— let  us  wait  and  see  the  hatogg  ! ” 

It  was  a soldier  being  knouted,  which  is  simply 
the  Russian  word  for  wdiipped.” 


/ 


132 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Stripped  to  the  loins,  he  was  strapped  to  an  erect 
board,  formed  like  an  inverted  cone,  and  having 
three  notches  at  the  upper  end,  one  to  receive  his 
chin,  and  the  other  two  his  wrists,  while  the  tortur- 
er wielded  a knout,  the  handle  of  which  is  usually 
eighteen  inches  long  with  a thong  of  thirty-six 
inches.  This  is  always  boiled  in  milk,  by  which 
process  it  swells  and  the  edges  become  sharp,  hard, 
and  more  destructive. 

The  whipper  was  skilful : he  laid  on  his  lashes 
from  the  neck  to  the  loins,  so  as  to  deal  them  at  in- 
tervals of  one  inch' artistically  apart,  leaving  a stripe 
of  flesh  between  each ; but  these  regulated  and 
omitted  stripes,  after  receiving  a fresh  knout,  he 
proceeded  to  take  off  in  succession,  with  wonderful 
and  terrible  precision,  till  the  man’s  entire  back  was 
a mass  of  blood,  and  he  hung,  fainting  and  well- 
nigh  speechless,  by  the  wrists. 

Oh,  Excellency,”  said  he,  in  an  imploring  voice, 
remember  that  my  brother,  Alexis  J agouski,  aid- 
ed you  in  escaping  from  the  battle  of  Zorndorff  ! ” 
This  was  most  true,  but  the  story  was  a terrible 
one.  At  Zorndorff,  where  the  Russians  were  de- 
feated with  such  slaughter  and  driven  towards  the 
frontiers  of  Poland,  the  horse  of  Bernikoff  was  shot 
under  him,  and  he  was  in  danger  of  being  cut 
down  by  the  Prussian  Hussars.  In  this  sore  ex- 
tremity a Cossack  named  Alexis  Jagouski  took  his 
leader  behind  him  on  his  crupper ; but  that  person- 


Charlie’s  first  day  usr  schlusselblrc.  133 

age,  finding  that  the  double  weight  impeded  the 
horse’s  speed,  and  that  the  Hussars  were  close  be- 
hind, shortened  his  sabre  in  his  hand,  and  plunging 
the  blade  into  the  body  of  his  preserver,  fiung  the 
corpse  from  the  saddle,  and  escaped  alone. 

At  this  reminiscence  Bernikoff  only  scowled 
more  deeply ; and  now  the  lacerated  back  of  the 
sufferer  was  strewed  with  course  gunpowder,  to 
which  a match  was  applied.-  This  is  technically 
known  as  the  hatogg^  and  the  agony  it  produced  is 
indescribable. 

The  culprit  was  now  cast  loose,  but  was  still  able, 
according  to  the  slavish  usage  of  the  country,  to 
crawl  on  his  hands  and  knees  towards  Bernikoff, 
and  he  gasped  out : — 

Hospodeen — Excellency,  I thank  you  humbly 
for  this  most  merciful  punishment.” 

Begone,  dog  of  an  Asiatic  ! ” replied  the  Gover- 
nor, kicking  him  in  the  face  ; when  next  you  seek 
to  fill  jmur  pipe,  this  will  teach  you  to  keep  your 
filthy  fingers  out  of  my  tobacco  pouch.” 

These  w^ere  the  defenders  of  theii’  country,  the 
Holy  Russia,  among  whom  a wayward  fate  had 
cast  the  Scottish  palatine : the  blood  of  the  latter 
boiled  within  him ; but  he  knew  too  well  that  to 
expostulate  would  be  but  to  excite  suspicion,  and  to 
court  degradation  and  the  musket.  Something, 
hovrever,  in  the  expression  of  his  face  did  not  es- 
cape Bernikoff’s  keen  and  angry  eyes. 


134 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Ivanovitch  Balgonie,  a superior  can  never  act 
unjustly  to  his  inferior/’  said  he  sternly;  and  these 
words  terribly  embodied  the  genuine  spirit  of  the 
true  Russian  Tchinnovnik^  or  noble  class.  I am 
in  the  service  of  the  State/’  he  added ; and  the 
State  is  the  Czarina  ! ” 

Yet  this  upright  Governor,  who  knouted  the  poor 
Cossack  for  pilfering  a pipeful  of  tobacco,  had  al- 
ways a garrison  double  its  actual  strength  on  paper, 
the  pay  and  rations  of  the  men  of  straw  forming  a 
pleasant  addition  to  his  many  secret  perquisites, 
while  his  soldiers  starved  and  frequently  begged 
food  from  the  very  prisoners  they  guarded. 

It  was  neither  hospitality  nor  love  of  soicety 
which  had  procured  the  honor  of  an  invitation  for 
Balgonie ; but  Bernikoff  shrewdly  suspecting  that 
he  might  have  some  loose  cash,  resolved  to  possess 
himself  thereof  at  cards ; so  barely  was  a dinner  of 
sJtee  (which  is  identically  Scotch  broth,)  croquettes, 
with^^^r^^  of  beet-root,  beef  in  the  Hussar  style, 
with  salad  of  baked  beet-root  and  biscuits,  dismissed, 
than  champange-cup,  and  vodka  (or  corn-brandy) 
punch  became  the  order  of  the  evening ; and  Ber- 
nikoff, who  was  a great  gourmand,  with  his  face 
flushed  and  his  uniform  open,  after  signing  the 
cross  and  bowing  thrice  to  a picture  of  St.  Sergius, 
sat  down  to  cards  with  Ylasflef  and  Tschekin,  who 
were  quite  as  sharp  as  himself,  and  with  poor  simple- 
hearted  Charlie  Balgonie,  who  dreaded  to  decline. 


Charlie’s  first  day  in  Schlusselburg.  135 

circumstanced  as  he  was  on  all  hands ; and  who  was 
glad  when  allowed  to  quit  the  table  with  the  loss, 
he  never  could  understand  how,  of  twenty  xervon- 
ite,  or  pieces  worth  nine  shillings  sterling  each. 

“ Now,  Ylasfief — ’tis  you  and  I ; rouge-et-noir  ! ” 
exclaimed  Bernikoff,  draining  a goblet  of  vodka 
punch  at  a draught. 

I am  too  weary  too  play,  most  excellent  Colonel ; 
pray  excuse  me,”  urged  the  Captain,  who  had  lost 
considerable  to  his  senior  also. 

You,  then,  Tschekin  ? ” said  Bernikoff  savagely. 

I hav’n’t  a kopac  to  spare.  Excellency  ! ” 

Well — I saw  a pretty  housemaid  at  your  man- 
sion in  the  town  yesterday — the  daughter  of  a serf 
apparently.” 

^^Feodorowna?” 

^Wery  likely — with  red  hair  and  brown  eyes.” 

Ah ! the  same ; she  came  with  Madame  Tschekin 
from  the  household  of  her  father.  General  Wey- 
marn.” 

By  all  the  devils,  she  is  very  like  old  W eymarn ! ” 
“ She  is  the  daughter  of  my  old  nurse,  Colonel,” 
said  Tschekin  gravely,  with  an  air  of  annoyance. 

I don’t  care  whose  daughter  she  is ! ” 

“Well?” 

“ I’ll  put  a hundred  silver  roubles  on  her.” 

“ Done  ! I put  her  on  the  ace.” 

“ The  ace  hath  lost!  ” exclaimed  Bernikoff,  with 
a shout  of  laughter.  “ Holy  Sergius ! the  girl  is 


136 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


mine.  To-morrow,”  he  added,  I’ll  send  a corporal 
and  a file  of  men  for  her,  with  a covered  kabitka. 
See  that  all  her  things  are  packed  and  ready,  friend 
Tschekin,  or  write  to  your  wife  about  it,  and  say 
you  have  lost  her  at  cards.” 

The  devil ! — Excellency — this  can’t  be.” 

Why  ? I won  her  fairly.” 

^^But  the  girl  is  about  to  be  married  to  her 
cousin.” 

WaSy  you  mean;  the  cards  have  changed  her 
destiny,  like  that  of  the  serfs  whom  Yalsfief  drank 
away  in  champagne  last  night.” 

So  passed  Charlie’s  first  day  at  Schlusselburg. 


CHAPTER  XV. 


THE  IMPERIAE  PRISONER. 

Fortunately  for  Balgonie,  there  was  a 
chaplain,  or  priest,  of  the  Russian  Greek 
Church,  attached  to  the  fortress ; and  his  society,  at 
times,  tended  to  alleviate  what  he  endured  from  hav- 
ing to  associate  with  such  a human  bear  as  Colonel 
Bernikoff, — an  annoyance  from  which  he  would  only 
be  relieved  by  the  longed-for  return  of  General  W ey- 
marn  and  the  Regiment  of  Smolensko  to  St.  Peters- 
burg. 

The  ceremonies  of  religion  retain  in  Russia  all 
their  pristine  influence,  and  afford  the  miserable  and 
unlettered  serf  a short  season  of  relaxation  from 
labour  and  severity  during  festivals,  when  he  may 
enjoy  his  can  of  flery  vodka  and  revel  in  intoxica- 
tion. Unlike  many  of  the  Russian  clergy,  who 
adopt  the  cowl  merely  as  the  means  of  evading 
slavery  in  civil  life,  or  slavery  added  to  peril  in  the 
army,  and  also  as  a chance  of  attaining  to  power 
and  nobility.  Father  Chrysostom,  the  Chaplain  of 
Schlusselburg,  was  a humane,  gentle,  and  learned 
old  priest,  whom  th6  Commandant  had  been  de- 
praved enough  to  strike  with  his  clenched  hand  on 

137 


138 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


more  than  one  - occasion ; but  prior  to  doing  so,  he 
had  always  contrived,  oddly  and  superstitiously 
enough,  to  have  the  chief  badge  of  the  father’s 
sacred  ofl&ce,  his — baretta — abstracted  and  hidden. 

Through  the  good  offices  of  the  chaplain,  with 
the  permission  of  the  Governor,  which  was  yielded 
very  unwillingly,  Balgonie  (whose  curiosity  and 
commiseration  were  greatly  excited)  was  presented 
one  evening  to  the  deposed  Emperor  Ivan,  and  the 
particulars  and  incidents  of  that  interview  made  a 
deep  and  sad  impression  upon  him. 

The  entrance  door  of  the  central  tower  was  small, 
arched,  and  of  great  strength.  Above  it  were 
carved  the  Kussian  arms,  first  adopted  by  Ivan 
Basil  ovitch  in  the  sixteenth  century:  a spread-eagle, 
having  on  its  breast  an  escutcheon  bearing  St. 
Michael  and  a dragon,  with  three  crowns  in  chief 
for  Muscovy  and  the  two  Tartar  kingdoms  of  Kazan 
and  Astracan. 

On  passing  through  a little  paved  court,  grated 
over  with  iron,  where  the  royal  recluse  was  permit- 
ted to  breathe  the  external  air,  while  a sentinel  trod 
to  and  fro  above  his  head,  another  door-way,  se- 
cured by  a portcullis  grooved  into  the  wall,  gave 
access  to  the  narrow  stair  which  led  to  his  apart- 
ments. These  were  two  in  number : their  windows 
and  doors  were  all  grated  with  iron ; and  sentinels, 
with  loaded  arms,  watched  every  avenue  by  day  and 
night. 


THE  IMPERIAL  PRISONER. 


139 


His  sitting-room  m’rs  plainly,  even  neatly  fur- 
nished : its  chief  ornaments  being  a pretty  Madonna 
and  some  gaudy  pictures  of  Muscovite  saints ; and 
it  had  one  window,  which  opened  towards  tlie  vast 
expanse  of  the  lake  of  Ladoga. 

Pale,  handsome,  and  resigned,  gentle  in  eye  and 
manner,  the  poor  young  prince  had  grown  to  man- 
hood in  total  ignorance  of  the  outer  world  and  of  all 
he  had  lost.  He  knew  only  the  four  walls  of  the 
prison,  the  changing  hues  of  the  weaves  and  clouds, 
the  wild  swans  and  the  waters  of  Ladoga. 

As  related  in  our  fifth  chapter,  the  Prisoner  of 
Schlusselburg  was  the  eldest  son  of  the  Princess  of 
Mecklenburg,  Elizabeth-Catharine,  niece  of  the 
Empress  Anne.  His  father  was  Anthony  IJlric, 
Duke  of  Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel,  whose  wliole 
family  was  banished  from  Pussia  by  the  usurping 
Empress  Elizabeth. 

Tlie  infant  Ivan  had  been  dethroned,  after  being 
a king  for  exactly  one  year. 

, During  the  reign  of  the  Empress  Catharine,  he 
was  detained  in  Schlusselburg  under  tlie  denomin- 
ation of  a Person  Unknown^  and  it  was  given  out 
that  his  senses  were  impaired,  though  it  is  pretty 
well  understood  that  this  is  witlioiit  foundation.” 
His  fate  has  been  particularly  lamentable,”  con- 
tinues a newspaper  of  the  period ; torn  from  the 
bosom  of  his  family,  he  has  now  passed  twenty- 
three  years  in  close  captivity.  The  late  Empress 


140 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Elizabeth,  towards  the  latter  end  of  her  life,  seemed 
disposed  to  treat  this  noble  captive  with  clemency 
and  favor — either  from  sentiments  of  justice  and 
compassion,  or  to  render  two  great  personages  more 
circumspect  and  submissive.” 

These  personages  were  her  successors,  the  un- 
fortunate Peter  III.  and  Catharine  II. 

Ivan’s  mother  is  said  to  have  died  of  grief ; but 
Duke  Anthony  Ulric  and  his  four  other  children 
were  all  confined  for  life  in  a house  at  Horsens,  a 
town  of  Jutland,  at  the  extremity  of  the  Baltic 
where  they  had  a precinct  of  a mile  English ; but 
it  was  surrounded  by  high  palisades,  beyond  which 
they  dared  not  venture  under  pain  of  death ; and 
there  the  Duke,  old  and  blind,  passed  the  last  years 
of  his  melancholy  life. 

His  youngest  daughter,  Elizabeth,  was  a woman 
of  high  spirit  and  elegant  manners,”  according  to 
Coxe,  the  traveler,  who  visited  her  ; she  possessed 
portraits  of  her  father  and  mother,  and  even  con- 
trived to  procure  a rouble  of  her  brother  Ivan, 
struck  during  his  short  reign.  It  is  difficult  to  con- 
jecture how  she  could  obtain  a coin,  the  possession 
of  which  was  more  than  once  punished  by  the  Em- 
press Elizabeth  as  high  treason,  as  it  is  still  more 
difficult  to  imagine  how  she  could  secret  it  from  the 
knowledge  of  her  guards  during  her  long  imprison- 
ment.” 

Confinement  had  rendered  Ivan’s  features  un- 


THE  IMPERIAL  PRISONER. 


141 


naturally  pale  and  delicate ; and,  by  years  of  syste- 
matic constraint  and  oppression,  his  fine,  clear,  and 
very  beautiful  dark  eyes  had  a soft,  subdued  and 
chastened  expression,  that  was  singularly  touching 
and  winning. 

The  tone  of  his  voice  was  also  gentle  and  al- 
luring. 

Hospodeen,”  said  he,  presenting  his  hand  to 
Balgonie,  I rejoice  to  meet  you,  if  one  who  leads 
a life  so  strange  as  mine  can  be  said  to  rejoice ; but 
you  are  one  to  whom  I may  talk  a little  without 
danger — eh.  Father  Chrysostom  ? And  he  has  told 
me,  Hospodeen,  that  j^ou  are  not  a Russian,  but  a 
native  of  some  island  that  is  for  away  in  the  sea. 
What  are  you  ? A Tartar — a Tcherkesse  ? Oh  no, 
you  cannot  be  either.  I know  them ; for  they 
guard  me,”  he  added,  with  a little  shudder. 

‘‘  I am  your  friend,  believe  me,  Ivan  Antono- 
vitch,”  replied  Balgonie,  who  was  touched  by  the 
childlike  simplicity  of  the  poor  recluse,  who  was 
plainly  attired  in  a caftan  of  fine  green  cloth,  edged 
with  a narrow  trimming  of  yellow  fur ; the  square 
crowned  cap,  which  he  only  wore  when  in  the 
grated  court,  was  of  the  same  materials.  A small 
gold  cross  was  at  his  neck,  a rosary  of  amber  hung 
at  his  right  wrist,  and  a little  pipe,  the  only  luxury 
allowed  him,  was  dangling  from  one  of  his  breast 
buttons. 

When  in  his  presence  Balgonie  always  thought 


142 


THE  SECR^:T  BiSPAfCH. 


with  horror  of  the  cruel  tenor  of  the  dispatch  he 
had  brought,  and  trembled  for  the  result  of  his 
friends’  conspiracy. 

To  teach  Ivan  anything,  even  to  read  or  to  write, 
was  treason ; yet  ho  had  gleaned  a little  of  his  own 
history,  and  that  of  his  family,  from  the  casual  re- 
marks of  his  guards  and  from  the  Chaplain,  during 
the  long,  long  years  of  his  captivity,  the  reason  for 
which  he  failed  to  understand,  but  the  system  of 
which  had  become  as  a second  nature  to  him  ; and 
the  little  he  learned,  made  a deep,  rather  than  a 
bitter,  impression  upon  him. 

The  whole  energies  of  each  successive  Chaplain 
had  been  given  to  preparing  him  for  another  and  a 
brighter  state  of  existence,  and  to  turning  his  hopes 
and  wishes  towards  it,  rather  than  to  this  world,  of 
which  he  was  well-nigh  weary  if  not  utterly  ignor- 
ant ; and  so  much  was  he  impressed  by  the  uncer- 
tainty of  human  life  in  general,  and  of  his  own  in 
particular,  that  daily,  for  years,  he  had  seen  the  sun 
rise  from  the  waters  of  Ladoga  in  doubt  whether 
he  would  see  it  set ; and  nightly  had  he  laid  down 
his  liead  without  the  assurance  of  being  a live  man 
in  the  morning. 

Life  had  no  charm — death  no  terror  for  Ivan. 

In  his  visits,  which  were  frequent,  as  the  young 
Prince  had  conceived  a great  regard  for  him, 
Charlie  Balgonie  knew  not  upon  what  topes  to  con- 
verse 5 for  he  experienced  great  difficulty  in  fashion- 


IMPERIAL  PRISONER. 


143 


ing  his  sentences  and  observations  to  suit  a listener 
whose  knowledge  of  the  external  world  and  of  all  the 
machinery  of  life  was  so  limited.  In  those  visits 
Balgonie  was  always  accompanied  by  the  Chaplain, 
or  Captain  Ylasfief,  as  the  watchful  and  suspicious 
Bernikoff  would  by  no  means  permit  them  to  have 
an  interview  alone. 

I am  so  glad  to  have  you  for  a friend,  Ivano- 
vitch  Balgonie,”  the  Prince  would  say  sometimes ; 

though  Father  Chrysostom  assures  me  that  kings 
may  have  peers  and  soldiers,  serfs  and  slaves,  but, 
alas  ! they  can  never  have  2^  friend!  I have  heard 
my  guards  say  that  I was  once  a King — an  Em- 
peror ; but  1 cannot  remember  when.  It  must  have 
been  long,  long  ago,  as  Bussia  has  had  four  mon- 
archs  since.  I have  not  even  a dream  of  it — an  Em- 
peror ? Yet  I shall,  too,  probably  die  even  as  Deme- 
trius did.  I cannot  remember  even  my  mother ; 
for  they  tell  me  she  died  of  sorrow,  when  I was 
brought  here  from  a place  called  Moscow.  Do  you, 
Hospodeen,  remember  yours  ? ” 

“ When  I was  but  a child  she  died,  to  my  sorrow. 
Had  she  lived,  I might  not  have  been  here  in  Bussia 
to-day,”  replied  Balgonie. 

Well — but  you  may  remember,”  persisted  the 
young  Prince. 

True,  your  Highness ; memories  I have  of  a 
soft  fair  face  that  bent  over  my  little  bed  at  night ; 
of  one  who  kissed  and  hushed  me  to  sleep ; but  those 


144: 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


memories  are  faint  and  vivid,  broken  and  uncertain, 
according  to  my  mood  of  mind ; and  strange  it  is 
that  they  come  to  me  more  in  dreams  by  night  than 
thoughts  by  day,  especially  as  I grow  older.” 

I should  like  to  have  some  such  dreams,  but 
then  I have  nothing  to  remember ; I know  not  even 
my  own  age  or  when  I came  here,”  said  Ivan 
thoughtfully.  If  I do  dream  by  night,  I seem  to 
hear  only  what  I hear  by  day — the  voices  of  the 
Cossack  sentinels,  the  screams  of  the  sea-birds,  the 
dashing  of  the  waves  when  the  wind  crosses  the 
lake,  or  the  clanging  of  the  castle  bell.  Then  there 
are  times  when  I dream  that  I see  Demetrius,  and 
then  I awake  in  a cold  perspiration.  Tell  me 
of  the  things  that  are  being  acted  in  the  great 
world  that  lies  beyond  the  Lake  of  Ladoga,  for 
Father  Chrysostom  speaks  to  me  only  of  Heaven.” 
It  is  said  that  the  King  of  Prussia  has  agreed 
to  the  proposal  of — of — the  Empress,  about  the 
county  of  Wirtemberg,  in  Silesia.” 

How,  agreed  ? ” 

Count  Biron  is  to  have  the  estate  as  Duke  of 
Courland,  on  paying  eight  thousand  guineas  to 
Field-Marshal  Count  Munich,”  said  Balgonie. 

The  Prince  sighed  with  a bewildered  air,  for  all 
those  names  were  quite  new  to  him. 

And  who  is  Count  Biron  ? ” he  asked. 

A friend  of  the  Empress,”  said  Father  Chrysos- 
tom rather  hastily,  to  anticipate  the  reply  of  Balgonie, 


THE  IMPERIAL  PRISONER. 


145 


^^Tell  me  something  more.  Nay,  Father  Chry- 
sostom, don’t  chide  us,  pray,”  said  he,  seeing  that 
the  white  bearded  chaplain  looked  uneasy  and  rose 
to  retire. 

Conversation  of  this  kind  is  strictly  forbidden,” 

said  he ; and  if  Captain  Ylasfief  was  here ” 

Oh  ! ” exclaimed  the  Prince  with  a shudder, 
but  not  of  anger  (he  seemed  too  gentle  for  that 
emotion),  don’t  talk  of  Ylasfief  I implore  you. 
Pray  tell  me  more  news,  Hospodeen  ; I shall  learn 
all  the  names  in  time,  and  try  to  remember 
them.” 

There  are  strange  tidings  from  Warsaw,”  re- 
plied Balgonie,  who  began  to  get  bewildered  and 
knew  not  on  what  to  converse,  if  the  most  simple 
topics  of  the  day  were  forbidden ; a battle  has 
been  fought  at  Slonim,  between  Prince  Padzivil 
and  the  Russians,  who  defeated  him  after  a five 
hours’  engagement;  and  the  Princess  Eadzivil,  who 
is  newly  married  and  remarkably  beautiful,  fought 
on  horseback  among  the  Polish  troops.” 

Ah,  Demetrius  fought  on  horseback  too,”  said 
the  Prince,  as  if  speaking  to  himself,  and  a gesture 
of  undisguised  impatience  escaped  the  chaplain ; 
“ pray  tell  me  something  more,  for  no  one  ever 
speaks  of  such  things  to  me.” 

A new  theatre  has  been  opened  at  St.  Peters- 
burg,” replied  Balgonie  (who  thought  to  himself, 
the  devil  is  in  it,  if  I cannot  speak  of  that  / ”), 


146 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


“ and  there  was  represented  an  opera,  entitled 
Charles  the  GreatP 

Ah,  I don’t  quite  understand  all  that ; say  it 
again.” 

Indeed,  Balgonie  might  as  well  have  spoken  of 
carbonic  gas  or  the  Atlantic  cable,  had  he  ever 
heard  of  such  things ; for  the  mind  of  the  young 
Prince  could  not  comprehend  the  most  simple  mat- 
ters of  every  day-life.  This  was  merely  the  result 
of  his  entire  seclusion ; but  the  adherents  of  the 
Empress,  her  favorites  and  lovers,  industriously 
circulated  through  Russia  the  report  that  he  was  in 
a state  of  idiotcy. 

‘‘  And  this  place  that  you  spoke  of  ? ” he  resumed 
enquiringly. 

‘‘  The  theatre  ? ” 

‘‘  Yes,  Hospodeen ; who  lives  in  it  ? ” 

‘^One  of  the  actresses  performed  a magnificent 
cantata,  in  honor  of  the  Empress.” 

Ah ! ’tis  she,  I understand,  who  keeps  me  here,” 
said  the  Prince,  with  a sad  smile ; and  now  in  real 
terror,  and  quite  repenting  the  introduction  he  had 
brought  about.  Father  Chrysostom  rose  to  hurry 
Balgonie  away. 

As  they  were  retiring,  the  Prince  said : — 
Hospodeen,  you  have  dropped  something.” 

It  was  the  locket  with  Natalie’s  hair. 

What  is  in  this  ? ” asked  Ivan,  with  childlike 
interest. 


THE  IMPERIAL  PRISONER. 


147 


“ A lock  of  hail’,  your  Plighness.’^ 

“ How  odd ! and  you  wear  it,  just  as  I wear  my 
cross  ? ” 

It  is  the  gift,  the  souvenir  of  a lady  I love,  and 
who  loves  me : a countrywoman  of  your  own.’’ 
woman  ? ” said  Ivan,  ponderingly. 

Yes,  Excellency.” 

“ I have  never  looked  upon  a woman’s  face,  and 
know  not  what  it  is  like ; though  the  Empress  (whom 
God  long  preserve ! ) visited  rne  when  a child,  as  I 
have  been  told.  I have  heard  that  they  are  not 
bearded  like  men.  I shall  never  see  one,  it  is  for- 
bidden; yet — yet — as  I often  tell  Father  Chrysos- 
tom, I have  dreams  by  day — dreams  of  something 
else  than  wild  swans  and  bearded  Cossacks — of 
something  to  cling  to,  some  one  to  love  and  be 
loved  by.  It  must  be  this  kind  of  love  you  speak 
of: — oh  yes,  it  must ! ” said  Ivan,  as  he  gazed  with 
stupid,  but  reverent  wonder  at  the  lock  of  hair,  ere 
he  returned  it  to  Balgonie. 

Poor  young  Prince  ! ” exclaimed  the  latter,  as 
the  chaplain  hurried  him  away,  and  the  portcullis 
clanged  behind  them  in  its  grooves  of  stone. 

The  priest  now  urged  upon  Balgonie,  that  if  his 
visits  were  to  be  continued,  the  affairs  of  the  outer 
world  must  in  no  way  be  referred  to,  or  the  result 
might  be  most  disastrous  for  all  concerned. 

‘‘  The  seclusion  in  which  the  prisoner  is  kept,  has, 
I fear,  impaired  his  understanding,”  said  Balgonie. 


148 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Hah  ! do  you  think  so  ? ” grunted  Colonel  Ber- 
nikoff,  who  overheard  the  remark,  as  they  issued 
from  the  tower  of  Ivan.  You  must  know,  that 
your  genuine  Russian  is  like  a tiger,  as  some  writer 
has  it — a tiger  who  licks  the  hand  of  his  keeper,  so 
long  as  he  is  chained ; but  who  tears  him  asunder 
wdien  loose.  The  Empress  quite  understands  this ! ” 
How  is  it  that  you  intrust  me  so  freely  to  visit 
your  prisoner  ? ’’  asked  Charlie,  who  began  to  fear 
that  Bernikoff  might  be  laying  some  snare  for  him, 
by  according  this  hitherto  unwonted  permission. 

Do  you  really  wish  to  know  ? ” 

Yes,  Colonel — why  I in  particular — I only  ? ” 
Because  you  are  the  safest  man  in  Russia  to 
have  this  liberty.” 

^^How?” 

“ As  a soldier  of  fortune, — a stranger  among  us, 
— ^you  can  have  no  sympathy  with  anytliing  but  the 
strict  and  steady  execution  of  your  duty ; and  the 
line  of  that,”  added  Bernikoff,  darting  a keen  glance 
at  the  Scot,  as  with  us  all,  lies  in  fidelity  to  the 
Empress.” 

True,”  replied  Balgonie,  with  something  of  sad- 
ness in  his  tone,  and  very  little  of  enthusiasm. 

‘‘  Thus,  were  I to  order  you  to  blow  Ivan  Antono- 
vitch  from  the  mouth  of  a cannon,  I should  expect 
you  to  obey ! ” 

I trust  that  no  such  test  of  my  obedience  will 
ever  be  necessary,”  replied  Balgonie,  with  a hauteur 


THE  IMPERIAL  PRISONER. 


149 


which  Bernikoff  was  somewhat  unused  to  see  among 
his  subordinates. 

“We  shall  have  some  other  and  more  trouble- 
some prisoners  in  Schlusselburg  ere  long,”  said  the 
Governor,  with  knitted  brows. 

“ Whom  do  you  mean  ? ” 

“ Old  Count  Micro witz  and  his  family.  Warrants 
have  been  issued  by  the  Chancellor  to  arrest  them 
all.” 

“ All ! ” said  Balgonie,  in  a faint  voice. 

“ Yes,  women  as  well  as  men : an  escort  of  the 
Regiment  of  Smolensko  arrived  at  St.  Petersburg 
yesterday  with  the  Count  and  the  Hospoza  Mario- 
lizza.  His  daughter,  who  seems  to  be  deeply  in“ 
volved  in  some  plot,  has  for  the  time  effected  her 
escape.  But  they  will  soon  be  all  before  the  Secret 
Chancery,  and  then  the  knout  and  the  wheel  will  be 
at  work  with  a vengeance  ! ” 

The  reader  may  judge  how  these  and  similar  re- 
marks affected  poor  Charlie ; while  the  Governor,  as 
if  pleased  that  he  could  thus  inflict  pain,  walked 
away  with  a malicious  smile  on  his  sombre  visage, 
cramming  tobacco  into  the  bowl  of  his  pipe. 

There  were  times,  however,  when  the  captive 
Prince,  after  his  acquaintance  with  Balgonie,  was  a 
little  less  resigned,  and  had  strange  longings  to  see 
something  of  the  great  world  that  lay  beyond  his 
prison  walls,  and  the  waves  that  lashed  them ; to  see 
other  faces  than  those  of  the  fierce  and  bearded 


150 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Tcliernemoski  and  Volga  Cossacks  who  guarded 
him ; a longing  even  to  do  something  great  and  dar- 
ing, to  be  remembered  in  after  years  with  love  and 
reverence ; to  be  remembered,  as  he  said,  in  tradi- 
tion, like  Demetrius.’’  Then,  feeling  all  the  utter 
hopelessness  of  such  new  aspirations,  he  would  strive 
to  be  contented,  to  repeat  with  fresh  energy  the 
daily  prayers  set  for  him  by  Father  Chrysostom,  and 
to  be  grateful  for  life,  lest  he  should  die  even  as 
Demetrius  died. 

Who  is  this  Demetrius,  of  whom  he  constantly 
speaks,  and  whose  fate  he  fears  .so  much  may  be  his 
own  ? ” asked  Balgonie  one  day. 

“ It  is  an  old,  but  a strange  and  terrible  story,” 
replied  the  chaplain.  When  Ivan  Basilovitch 
died  about  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century,  his 
widow  was  banished  to  Northern  Russia  by  the  new 
Czar  Feodor,  whose  Prime  Minister  urged  that  he 
could  never  reign  in  peace  or  security  unless  he  im- 
itated the  Turks  by  sacrificing  all  who  were  nearly 
allied  to  the  throne ; so  he  exiled  his  mother,  as  I 
have  said,  and  ordered  an  officer  to  assassinate  his 
younger  brother  Demetrius. 

The  officer,  being  a humane  man,  was  filled  with 
horror  on  receiving  an  order  so  barbarous ; but  fear- 
ing alike  to  disobey,  or  to  leave  the  terrible  task  to 
he  fulfilled  by  one  less  scrupulous,  he  took  the  child 
with  him  to  a remote  district,  travelling  many  days’ 
journey  from  Moscow.  Then  he  wrote  some  words 


THE  IMPERIAL  PRISONER. 


151 


indelibly  on  the  skin  of  the  little  Prince,  tied  a cross 
of  brilliants  about  his  neck,  laid  him  at  the  door  of 
a peasant’s  hut,  and  galloped  away. 

the  tyrant  Feodor  he  gave  a circumstantial 
detail  of  how  and  where  he  had  killed  the  infant 
Prince,  and  sought  the  promised  reward. 

^ Receive  it  thus  ! ’ replied  Feodor,  who  plunged 
a sword  into  his  heart,  the  further  to  suppress  all 
proof  of  guilt. 

“ The  young  tyrant  died  of  a poison  administered 
by  his  Chancellor,  and  others  inherited  his  crown ; 
but  all  to  perish  miserably,  in  succession.  And  no 
less  than  four  pretenders  all  appeared,  each  calling 
himself  Demetrius,  to  contest  for  the  throne ; and 
all  the  land  was  deluged  with  blood. 

Some  twenty  years  after  the  alleged  death  of 
the  brother  of  Ivan,  a young  Cossack  of  the  Volga 
was  bathing  in  that  river  with  some  of  his  compan- 
ions, who  saw  with  surprise  that  he  had  chained 
round  his  neck  a cross  of  brilliants,  and  that  certain 
^ words  in  the  old  Muscovite  character  were  pricked 
upon  his  back.  They  were  examined  by  a neigh- 
bouring priest  and  found  to  be — 

^ This  is  Demetrius^  son  of  the  Czar^ 

Then  all  exclaimed  that  the  true  Demetrius  had 
been  found  at  last,  and  that  a miracle  from  Heaven 
had  saved  him.  His  life  was  soon  in  peril,  so  he 
fled  to  Holstein,  the  Duke  of  which,  after  keeping 


152 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


him  long  in  prison,  sold  him  to  the  Emperor  Mich- 
ael, by  whom  he  was  savagely  quartered  alive.  And 
it  is  the  fate  of  this  hapless  heir  of  Russia,  whose 
story  he  thinks  in  some  points  resembles  his  own 
(although  he  really  knows  but  little  of  his  own  an- 
nals), that  haunts  the  unfortunate  Ivan  in  his  gloom- 
iest hours.” 


I 


V 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


THE  TRATKIK. 

JWjflTH  evident  suspicion  and  mistrust,  Bernikoff 
VW4  viewed  the  growing  intimacy  between  his 
prisoner  Ivan  and  the  Scottish  Captain ; and 
though  he  neither  recommended  that  it  should 
cease  or  interdicted  it,  as  he  might  and  perhaps 
ought  to  have  done,  he  made  many  mental  notes 
thereof. 

Though  Balgonie  sympathised  with  Ivan  to  the 
fullest  extent,  he  knew  too  well  the  danger  of  doing 
more ; and  he  felt  that  he  had  his  own  share  of 
secret  sorrow  and  anxiety,  and  might  yet  have 
greater  to  endure.  The  girl  he  loved  with  all  the 
strength  of  a first  and  romantic  passion  was  already 
a political  fugitive  ; her  father  and  cousin  were 
prisoners,  and  perhaps  in  chains  ; her  brother  and  his 
kinsman,  Usakoff,  already  viewed  as  criminals;  and 
with  the  terrors  of  despotism  hanging  over  them  all. 

Natalie  a fugitive — and  where  ? In  the  wild 
forests,  perhaps,  where  wolves  and  outlaws  lurked, 
what  perils  and  privations  might  she  not  be  suffer- 
ing ! Natalie  so  delicate,  so  pure,  so  gently  nur- 
tured, and  so  highly  bred. 


153 


154 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Balgonie  was  aware,  also,  that  intimacy  with  the 
family  of  Count  Mierowitz,  and  the  deep  interest 
he  had  in  their  fate,  was  fraught  with  personal 
peril  to  himself  in  such  a land  of  tju^anny  as  Russia. 
Full  of  such  thoughts  as  these  one  forenoon,  he 
was  leaning  on  a cannon  in  one  of  those  deep  em- 
brasures of  the  fortress  which  faced  the  drawbridge 
communicating  with  the  land.  The  guard  was  in 
the  act  of  lowering  the  bridge  to  permit  a man  to 
pass  out.  This  person  was  just  parting  from  Berni- 
koff,  with  whom  he  had  been  for  some  time  in  close 
and  earnest  conversation,  and  from  whom  he  w^as 
evidently  receiving  money — an  unusual  circum- 
stance, as  that  distinguished  field-officer  generally 
lavished  more  kicks  and  cuffs  than  thanks  or 
kopecs. 

On  beholding  this  man,  as  he  bowled  humbly,  cap 
in  hand,  cross  the  bridge  and  disappear  among  the 
houses  of  the  town  beyond,  Balgonie  experienced  a 
species  of  nervous  shock.  He  could  not  doubt  that 
this  fellow,  so  gigantic  in  stature  and  pow^erful  in 
muscular  development,  in  the  coarse  caftan  and 
leathern  girdle,  with  the  long  lock  of  grizzled  hair 
dangling  behind  his  right  ear,  was  JSicholas  Paulo- 
vitch,  the  murderer  of  Podatchkine,  the  gipsy 
woodman,  and  the  swindling  mendicant  of  the  bar- 
rier at  the  Neva. 

This  man  here  in  Schlusselburg,”  thought  Bal- 
gonie, with  indignation  and  alarm  ; here  in  earnest 


THE  TRATHIH. 


155 


conversation  with  Bernikoff ! The  spirit  of  mis- 
chief seems  to  pervade  the  air  again  ! ” 

A few  minutes  afterwards  the  Cossack  Jagouski 
who,  as  related,  had  been  so  severely  knonted  by 
Bernikoff  for  pilfering  a pipeful  of  tobacco,  came 
forward  with  tottering  steps,  and  looking  painfully 
thin  and  feeble  from  recent  suffering ; and  with 
the  crouching  bearing  of  the  Muscovite  towards  a 
superior,  said  that  his  Excellency,  the  Governor 
wished  to  speak  with  him  in  his  quarters,  whither 
Balgonie  at  once  repaired,  after  having,  as  military 
etiquette  required,  buckled  on  his  sword. 

Carl  Ivanovitch,”  said  Bernikoff,  who  certainly 
had  rather  a perturbed  air,  “ some  suspicious  charac- 
ters are  in  our  vicinity,  and  have  actually  been 
hovering  in  boats  about  the  fortress.  What  think 
you  of  that  ? ’’ 

“ Suspicious  characters.  Excellency — how  ? ” 

In  a Tratkir  of  the  town,  one  dropped  this  coin 
— a silver  rouble  of  the  prisoner  Ivan — Ivan  the 
Unknown  Person.  To  possess  one,  unless  as  I do 
this^  for  proof  of  treason,  is  to  court  death  or  Si- 
beria.” 

And  from  whom  had  you  this  ? ” 

A spy,”  replied  the  Colonel  curtly. 

The  man  who  has  just  left  you  ? ” 

The  same.” 

Nicholas  Paulovitch,”  continued  Balgonie,  with 
increasing  astonishment  at  the  other’s  coolness ; 


156 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH, 


the  assassin  of  the  Corporal — the  wretch  of  whom 
I told  you  when  I first  arrived  here ! ” 

“ All  that  may,  or  may  not  be,”  replied  Berni- 
koff,  with  a stern  air,  almost  amounting  to  rude- 
ness : when  I require  this  devil  of  a fellow  no 

more,  you  may  impale  him,  if  you  please  ; but  mo- 
lest him  not,  at  present.” 

I do  not  see.  Excellency,  that  all  this  in  any 
way  concerns  me,”  said  Balgonie  haughtily,  as  he 
lifted  his  hat,  and  put  his  sabre  under  his  arm,  as  if 
about  to  retire. 

“ It  does  concern  you  thus  far.  I shall  anticipate 
any  attempt  that  be  made  by  those  lurkers,  who- 
ever they  may  be.  You  must  remember,”  he 
added,  lowering  his  voice,  the  tenor  of  the  dis- 
patch you  brought  me  ? ” 

“ Perfectly,”  replied  Charlie,  in  a somewhat  faint 
voice,  as  he  knew  not  how  terrible  or  repugnant 
might  be  the  duty  assigned  him  by  this  military 
despot. 

‘‘Well,  you  shall  pass  forth  into  the  town  to- 
night, with  a patrol  of  twenty  men,  armed  with 
sabres  and  carbines.  Surround  and  search  the  Trat- 
kir  in  the  main  street,  and  compel  all  therein,  who 
seem  suspicious,  to  produce  their  papers  ; and,  if 
they  are  without  such,  bring  them  to  me^  and  I shall 
question  them  in  a fashion  of  my  own.” 

By  the  laws  of  Russia,  at  that  time,  persons 
could  not  travel  from  St.  Petersburg,  or  even  from 


THE  TBATKIR. 


157 


place  to  place,  without  a passport — describing  their 
occupation,  appearance,  and  route,  which  they  were 
not  at  liberty  to  alter ; and  in  the  rural  districts, 
travellers  required  a pass  from  the  lord  whose  estate 
they  may  have  been  upon,  before  they  were  at  lib- 
erty to  quit  it.  Without  such  a document,  no  one 
would  dare  to  furnish  them  with  food  or  shelter; 
nor  would  a postmaster  give  them  horses,  however 
high  their  rank,  or  great  their  offer  of  reward — to 
such  complete  subjection  had  the  system  of  ac- 
cepted despotism  reduced  the  people. 

And  I am  to  take  twenty  men  with  me  ? ” said 
Balgonie,  after  an  unpleasant  pause. 

“ Yes  ! the  bridge  will  be  lowered  for  you  after 
sunset.  Whoever  these  lurkers  are,  they  have  been 
seen  and  overheard  ; and  this  coin  is  proof  sufficient 
to  warrant  the  transportation  of  a whole  province. 
Be  they  who  they  may,  by  every  dome  in  sacred 
Mother  Moscow,  they  shall  find  me  ready  for 
them  ! ” 

And  Bernikoff  grimly  touched  his  small  dagger, 
a species  of  weapon  which  a Russian  officer  is  sel- 
dom or  never  without,  even  in  the  present  day ; and 
when  Charlie  Balgonie  remembered  how  that  same 
dagger  had  been  thrust  into  the  throat  of  the  half- 
strangled  Peter  III.,  a fiush  of  indignant  hate  and 
aversion  crossed  his  honest  face.  To  him  it  was  evi- 
dent that  tlie  spirit  of  mischief  or  malevolence  made 
Bernikoff  select  him,  as  one  whom  he  suspected  of  a 


158 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


friendly  Interest  in  the  family  of  Count  Mierowitz, 
for  this  unpleasant  duty,  instead  of  Captain  Ylasfief, 
the  Lieutenant  of  Schlusselburg,  or  any  other  officer, 
who  must  have  been  better  acquainted  with  the  ad- 
jacent town  and  all  its  places  of  entertainment,  than 
he,  a total  stranger,  could  ever  be. 

But  he  was  a soldier ; he  had  no  resource  but  to 
obey  in  silence ; and  an  angry  sigh  escaped  him  as 
he  stuck  his  loaded  pistols  in  his  girdle,  when  the 
sun  sank  behind  the  green  painted  roofs  of  the 
wooden  town,  and  the  evening  gun  boomed  from  the 
ramparts  across  the  Lake  of  Ladoga. 

Defiling  in  the  twilight  through  the  streets  of 
Schlusselburg,  he  marched  straight  to  where  he  knew 
that  the  principal  Tratkir,  or  tea-house,  was  situated ; 
and  while  his  heart  sank  within  him  in  fear  of  whom 
he  might  arrest, — perhaps  Natalie  herself, — he  at 
once  surrounded  the  building,  to  prevent  all  egress, 
and  to  the  evident  alarm  and  perturbation  of  all  who 
were  within. 

These  tea-houses  are  no  longer  to  be  found  in  the 
capital  of  Russia  now,  for  there  all  the  restaurants 
are  constituted  and  arranged  upon  the  French  and 
German  models ; but  they  still  exist  in  Moscow  and 
elsewhere;  and  under  their  roofs,  the  genuine  Mus- 
covite consumes  what  would  seem  a fabulous  amount 
of  the  Chinese  plant.  They  are  chiefly  the  resort  of 
soldiers,  porters,  and  droski  drivers,  all  of  whom 
must  behave  in  a polite  and  orderly  manner  while 


THE  TRATKIE. 


159 


there.  All  must  enter  the  great  room  where  the 
tea  is  served,  cap  in  hand,  alike  out  of  respect  for 
the  company,  and  to  the  holy  pictures,  Souzdal  daubs 
of  SS.  Sergius,  Alexander  Newski,  and  so  forth, 
which  decorate  the  walls ; and  all  must  salute  the 
bar-keeper,  after  first  saluting  the  Holy  Image, 
which  is  to  be  found  in  every  Russian  apartment, 
and  before  which,  a lamp  of  train  oil  is  frequently 
burning. 

When  the  crooked  sabres  of  the  dismounted  Cos- 
sacks were  seen  flashing  in  the  porch,  and  when  Bal- 
gonie  entered  with  his  sword  drawn,  passing  along 
the  narrow  way  between  the  numerous  tables,  at 
which  the  groups  were  seated,  amid  an  oppressive 
odour  of  strong  tea,  coarse  tobacco,  and  Russian 
leather  from  boots,  caps,  and  girdles — many  a peasant 
in  his  canvas  caftan,  and  many  a stout  moujik  in  his 
fur  shoubah,  felt  his  heart  quail  with  apprehension, 
he  knew  not  of  what ; and  every  saucer — the  tea  is 
not  drunk  from  cups — wsis  set  down  untasted,  while 
one  or  two  men  nearly  choked  themselves  with  their 
lumps  of  sugar ; for  usually  it  is  not  put  into  the  tea, 
but  is  retained  in  the  mouth  of  the  drinker,  so  that, 
in  a spirit  of  economy,  the  poor  Muscovite  may  in- 
dulge in  two,  perhaps  three  cups  of  his  favourite 
beverage,  and  use  thereto  but  one  piece  of  sugar. 

For  his  intrusion  Balgonie  apologised;  this, 
though  a very  unusual  proceeding  in  a country  so 
despotic,  failed  to  reassure  the  tea  drinkers,  who 


160 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


were  all  hushed  in  silence  and  expectation ; and  a 
girl  who  had  been  singing  for  their  amusement, 
crouched  down  in  a corner  for  concealment. 

Balgonie  counted  the  number  of  persons  in  the 
Tratkir,  and  noted  the  exact  hour  by  his  watch ; he 
then  proceeded,  with  a heart  full  of  anxiety  and 
dread,  to  examine  each  person  in  succession,  in  real- 
ity looking  for  those  he  had  no  wish  to  find. 

All  who  possessed  the  requisite  papers,  showed 
them  ; others  proved,  all  in  succession,  to  be  soldiers 
in  uniform,  moujiks,  and  droski  drivers,  with  their 
brass  badges,  sailors,  and  serfs ; thus,  after  a time, 
a load  seemed  to  be  lifted  from  the  mind  of  the 
young  officer.  As  he  turned  to  leave  the  apartment 
without  a prisoner,  the  Cossack  Jagouski  rather 
roughly  dragged  the  singing  girl  from  the  nook 
where  she  had  sought  concealment,  and  then  Bab 
gonie  recognised  the  fine  dark  face,  the  black  eyes, 
and  the  large  glittering  ear-rings  of  Olga  Paulowna, 
the  gipsy  girl  whom  he  had  befriended  at  Louga — 
she  who  saved  him  from  a terrible  fate  in  the  forest. 

Let  the  girl  go  free,  Jagouski,”  said  Balgonie ; 

I shall  answer  for  her  if  required.” 

Olga  drew  a paper  from  her  bosom  and  showed 
that  it  was  her  passport  from  tho  Commandant  of 
Krejko,  permitting  her  to  travel  to  and  from  Schlus- 
selburg. 

Jagouski  saluted  and  withdrew  a few  paces ; and 
now,  as  if  the  cloud  of  doubt  and  dread  Balgonie’s 


THE  TRATKIU. 


161 


arrival  had  cast  over  all  was  dispersed,  again  the 
noisy  hum  of  voices  pervaded  the  long  room  of  the 
tea-house,  and  laughter  even  broke  forth  at  intervals. 

Olga,”  said  Balgonie,  you  here — so  far  from 
home  ? ” 

“ Yes,  Hospodeen,  for  my  home  is  anywhere,  or 
wherever  night  finds  me ; but  I have  news  for  you.” 
“ News — and  for  me  ? ” 

Yes,”  said  she,  sinking  her  voice  to  a whisper  ; 

I have  news  of  Natalie  Mierowna ” 

“ Hush,  for  heaven’s  sake,  girl ! — hush  ! ” said 
Balgonie  with  a nervous  start. 

“ She  is  here ” 

“ Here  in  this  house  ? ” 

No,  Hospodeen.” 

‘‘  Where  then  ? — oh,  speak  quickly ! ” 

In  the  neighborhood  of  Schlusselburg.” 

Charlie  felt  his  heart  die  within  him  at  this  in- 
telligence, for  such  a vicinity  was  full  of  peril. 

“ Be  to-morrow  at  noon  on  the  road  that  leads  to 
Tosna,  and  you  shall  learn  more  ; but  do  you  know 
it,  Hospodeen  ? ” 

I shall  soon  discover  it — and  the  place  ? ” 

“ The  skirts  of  the  wood  four  versts  from  this.” 

“ Good — till  then,  adieu  ; and  God  be  with  you.” 
Balgonie  retired  all  unaware  or  heedless  that  his 
Cossacks  were  secretly  jesting  at  his  whispering 
with  the  pretty  gipsy ; and  through  the  dark  streets 
he  marched  them  tov/ards  the  great  and  sombre 


i62  THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 

masses  of  the  fort  which  loomed  between  him  and 
the  star-lighted  sky,  his  heart  the  while  being  liter- 
ally sick  with  alarm  and  dismay,  in  the  conviction 
that  the  long-dreaded  crisis  was  coming — that  Nata- 
lie was  near,  and  the  place  of  her  concealment  was 
known  to  a vagrant  gipsy  girl,  the  sister  of  Nicho- 
las Paulovitch,  who,  if  he  knew  it  not  already, 
might  wrest  the  secret  from  her  with  the  point  of 
his  knife,  for  the  information  of  him  whose  spy  he 
was — the  hateful  Bernikoff ! 

Ruin  and  sorrow  was  close  at  hand,  indeed. 

On  receiving  the  official  but  verbal  report  of  Bal- 
gonie,  and  learning  that  the  visit  to  the  identical 
tea-house  where  the  dangerous  rouble  was  found 
had  proved  abortive,  and  that  there  was  no  one  to 
be  knouted  or  hanged  in  the  morning.  Colonel 
Bernikoff  became  transported  with  rage,  and  lifted 
his  cane  somewhat  threateningly.  On  this,  Bal- 
gonie’s  hand  was  instantly  laid  on  the  hilt  of  his 
sword. 

“ Beware,  Excellency,”  said  he  firmly : “ a blow 
to  an  equal  is  a foul  insult ; to  an  inferior  it  is 
mean  tyranny ; and,  in  either  instance,  blood  alone 
should  wash  it  out.” 

On  this  the  Colonel’s  rage  assumed  a new  phase ; 
he  trod  on  his  cocked  hat,  and  ordered  the  wax  can- 
dles which  he  had  always  burning  before  the  image 
of  his  patron,  St.  Sergius,  to  be  extinguished.  He 
loaded  the  effigy  with  the  bitterest  reproaches,  and 


THE  TEATKIR- 


163 


for  that  night  left  the  poor  saint  in  total  dark- 
ness, despite  the  intercession  of  Father  Chrysos- 
tom. 


CHAPTEE  XVII. 


THE  WOOD  OF  THE  HONEY  TREE. 

noon  of  the  following  day  saw  Charlie 
^2/  Balgonie — after  an  anxious  and  almost  sleep- 
less night — proceeding  on  foot  along  the  road  that 
leads  southward  to  Tosna,  a little  town  which  stands 
on  a stream  of  the  same  name,  a tributary  of  the 
Neva,  but  some  thirty  versts  distant  from  Schlus- 
selburg. 

His  military  ardor  was  already  fading,  so  far  as 
the  Kussian  service  was  concerned,  amid  his  press- 
ing anxiety  for  the  dangers  that  menaced  Natalie; 
and  he  felt  liimself  only  a species  of  serf  in  an  im- 
perial uniform.  Unlike  the  Admirals  Douglas, 
Mackenzie,  Count  Balmaine,  and  hundreds  of  other 
Scotsmen  who  served  the  Empress  by  sea  and  land, 
he  had  thoughtlessly  omitted  to  stipulate,  as  they 
had  more  warily  done,  that  he  was  to  be  at  perfect 
liberty,  as  a British  subject,  to  return  to  his  native 
land  whenever  he  felt  disposed  to  do  so.  The  poor 
friendless  boy — the  kidnapped  Palatine,  who  had 
been  rescued  from  the  burning  wreck  of  the  Pis- 
catona^  while  floating  adrift  in  the  North  Sea — could 
know  little  how  necessary  such  stipulations  w’^ere 
164 


THE  WOOD  OF  THE  HONEY  TREE. 


165 


when  he  joined  the  Regiment  of  Smolensko  as  a 
cadet ; and  now  he  felt  himself  literally  a military 
slave  of  the  ambitious  and  lascivious  Catharine  II. 

Before  him  rose  the  tall  fir  trees  of  the  forest 
w’here  he  w^as  to  meet  Olga — the  Wood  of  the 
Honey  Tree,  as  it  was  named  from  an  episode  (re- 
lated by  Demetrius,  the  ambassador,  in  his  History 
of  Muscovy)  which  occured  to  a serf  of  Beriiikoff’s, 
Alexis  Jagouski,  father  of  the  same  man  whom  he 
slew  so  wickedly  and  ungratefully  in  the  flight  from 
Zorndorf;  and  the  whole  anecdote  reads  so  very 
like  one  of  the  adventures  of  Baron  Munchausen, 
or  Sir  Jonah  Barrington’s  ‘^bounces,”  that  we  may 
be  pardoned  translating  it  here. 

This  man,”  says  Demetrius,  when  seeking 
honey,  got  into  a hollow  tree,  where  the  bees  had 
concealed  such  a quantity  thereof,  that  it  sucked 
him  up  to  the  breast,  and  being  unable  to  extricate 
himself,  he  subsisted  for  two  days  upon  honey  alone; 
and  finding  that  his  shouts  were  answered  only  by 
the  echoes  of  the  vast  forest,  he  began  to  despair  of 
being  freed  from  his  sweet  captivity.  At  last,  to 
his  terror,  there  came  a large  brown  bear  from  the 
Neva,  to  eat  of  the  honey  which  the  old  tree  con- 
tained, and  of  which  these  animals  are  greedily 
fond.  As  the  bear  was  descending  with  hinder 
part  foremost,  the  poor  serf  caught  hold  of  his  loins. 
This  sudden  grasp  among  his  fur  so  terrified  the 
bear,  that  he  started  and  fled,  and  in  doing  so,  drew 


166 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


the  peasant  from  that  sweet  prison,  which  other- 
wise had  proved  his  grave : hence  was  the  forest 
named,  the  Wood  of  the  Honey  Tree.’’ 

There,  as  Balgonie  approached,  all  was  still  save 
the  voice  of  the  valdchnep,  or  woodcock,  and  the 
hum  of  insects  ; he  lingered  for  a few  minutes  on 
the  outskirts,  just  where  the  highway  to  Tosna 
dipped  down  into  a deep  and  gloomy  dingle  of  in- 
tertwisted branches,  which  formed  a species  of 
leafy  tunnel  overhead. 

Three  miles  distant  to  the  northward,  he  could 
see  the  place  he  had  left,  the  gloomy  Castle  of 
Schlusselburg,  moated  round  by  the  Neva  and  Lake 
of  Ladoga,  jutting  into  the  latter  on  its  rock,  its 
towers  wearing  a sombre  brown  tint  even  in  the 
noonday  sunshine,  as  if  no  light  could  brighten 
them ; and  the  white  flag  of  Russia  was  fluttering 
on  the  summit  of  the  keep,  where  Ivan  was  pining 
away  the  years  of  youth  in  silence  and  seclusion. 

Balgonie  heard  a voice  waking  the  echoes  of  the 
dingle ; three  notes  were  struck  on  a tambourine, 
as  a signal  to  him,  and  Olga  approached  singing  a 
verse  of  that  prophetic  song,  which  is  so  soothing 
to  Russian  military  and  religious  vanity : — 

But  when  the  hundredth  year 
Shall  three  times  doubled  be  ; 

Then  shall  the  end  appear 
Of  all  our  slavery. 

Then  shall  the  warlike  powers 
From  distant  climes  return, 


wood  of  the  honey  tree. 


16Y 


Egypt  again  be  ours, 

While  the  Turkish  domes  shall  burn  ! '' 

I have  kept  my  appointment,  Olga.” 

And  I mine,”  she  replied  gaily,  while  tripping 
towards  him  in  a playful  manner ; now  follow  me, 
Hospodeen,  and  I shall  take  you  to  those  who  will 
be  right  glad  to  see  you.” 

First  let  us  be  sure  that  we  are  unwatched.” 

‘‘  Right,”  said  she ; and  stooping  in  her  earnest- 
ness, her  keen,  dark,  and  glittering  eyes  swept  the 
whole  landscape  that  lay  between  the  wood  and 
Schlusselburg,  and  glanced  keenly  beyond  the  stems 
of  the  trees  into  the  dingles  and  vistas ; but,  save 
the  birds  on  the  branches  and  the  gnats  revolving 
in  the  sunshine,  no  living  thing  was  visible. 

^‘Follow,  me  Hospodeen,”  said  the  gipsy;  we 
have  not  far  to  go.” 

They  descended  into  the  dark  dingle,  or  hollow, 
and  then  quitted  the  highway ; Olga  gathering  up 
her  skirts  that  she  might  tread  with  greater  facility 
among  the  thick  gorse  and  long  rank  grass,  display- 
ing, as  she  did  so,  two  very  handsome  and  taper 
ankles  cased  in  scarlet  stockings  with  elaborate 
clocks  of  yellow  braid. 

She  explained  to  Balgonie  that,  as  there  was  no 
path  to  guide  them,  her  chief  clues  were  a set  of 
notches,  cut  to  all  appearance  carelessly,  as  if  with 
a woodman’s  axe,  on  the  bark  of  the  great  pine 
trees. 


168 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


These  marks  seem  fresh,  and  recently  cut — 
who  made  them  ? ” asked  Balgonie. 

“ The  Hospodeen,  Basil  Mierowitz,”  she  whis- 
pered. 

“ Poor  Basil ! ” responded  Charlie,  in  a low  tone. 

After  .toiling  through  the  dense  forest  for  more 
than  half  an  hour,  pausing  ever  and  anon  to  listen 
and  watch  whether  they  were  observed,  they  arrived 
at  the  foot  of  a grey  granite  cliff,  the  face  of  which 
was  screened,  or  nearly  covered,  by  masses  of  de- 
pending ivy,  creepers,  and  green  lichens,  forming  a 
background  which,  at  a little  distance,  blended  with 
the  greenery  of  the  woods. 

“We  have  arrived,”  said  she,  turning,  with  a flush 
on  her  dark  face  which  made  it  radiantly  beautiful. 
She  struck  three  strokes  on  her  tambourine,  and 
shook  its  bells. 

Charlie  thought  of  her  kinsman,  Nicholas  Paulo- 
vitch,  and  instinctively  grasped  one  of  the  pistols  at 
his  girdle,  on  seeing  the  dark  and  bearded  face  of  a 
man  appear  among  the  ivy  leaves  some  twenty  feet 
above  him.  A rope  ladder  was  lowered,  and  what- 
ever doubts  or  misgivings  were  in  his  mind,  he  felt 
himself  constrained  now  to  go  through  the  adventure 
to  its  end. 

He  clambered  up,  and  on  the  great  screen  of  ivy 
being  lifted  aside,  found  himself  face  to  face  with 
his  old  friend  Basil  Mierowitz,  the  subaltern  of  his 
company,  who,  grasping  both  his  hands  with  kindly 


THE  WOOD  OF  THE  HONEY  TREE. 


169 


warmth  of  manner,  led  him  into  a cavern  or  grotto, 
one  of  a series  of  many,  into  which  the  granite  rocks 
had  there  been  hollowed  by  some  long  past  convul- 
sion of  nature. 

Another  hand  was  instantly  laid  on  his, — a smaller 
and  softer  one, — and  two  beautiful  dark  eyes  were 
bending  tenderly  on  his  face. 

Natalie  ! ” he  exclaimed,  in  a tremulous  voice, 
and  would  have  pressed  her  to  his  breast,  but  for  the 
presence  of  Basil  and  several  other  men. 

Amid  the  twilight  of  the  cavern,  he  could  per- 
ceive its  rough  natural  walls  and  arch,  with  hazy  but 
sunny  rays  that  streamed  faintly  in  the  background, 
athwart  the  obscurity,  as  if  the  vault  communicated 
with  other  galleries  in  the  rock,  through  which  the 
upper  light  of  day  stole  in  by  the  crannies  and 
chasms.  He  was  also  enabled  to  see,  that,  with 
Natalie,  her  brother  Basil,  and  her  cousin  Usakoff, 
who  had  been  a Lieutenant  of  the  Valikolutz  Grena- 
diers, there  were  about  twenty  men  in  the  place,  all 
clad  in  sheepskin  shoubahs,  canvas  doublets,  or  the 
caftan,  the  invariable  dress  of  the  Bussian  peasant, 
and  nearly  all  had  red  serge  breeches,  rough  boots, 
and  girdles  of  rope  or  untanned  leather. 

Though  attired  like  woodmen  or  labouring  serfs, 
all  these  men  had  unmistakably  the  bearing  of  well- 
trained  soldiers : all  were  strong,  active,  and  resolute 
in  aspect ; and  Balgonie  had  no  doubt  that  they 
were  those  natives  of  the  Ukraine,  the  deserters  from 


170 


THE  SEOKET  DISPATCH. 


the  Livonian  frontier,  of  whom  Bernikoff  had 
spoken ; for  against  the  walls  of  the  cavern  were 
ranged  a number  of  muskets  and  bayonets,  with  sets 
of  accoutrements,  sabres,  and  pistols.  There,  too, 
stood  a regimental  drum,  decorated  with  the  impe- 
rial arms,  and  the  forbidden  name  of  the  Emperor 
Ivan  ! 

Every  moment  seemed  to  increase  the  perils  that 
surrounded  the  luckless  Balgonie,  for  now  he  was  in 
the  very  den  of  the  conspirators. 

All  carried  in  their  girdles  a dagger  or  knife  and 
double  brace  of  pistols.  They  seemed  to  be  chiefly 
soldiers  of  tlie  Regiment  of  Yalikolutz:  and  his 
sudden  appearance  among  them,  in  the  full  uniform 
of  the  Smolensko  Infantry,  evidently  excited,  if  it 
did  not  alarm  them ; for  discipline  becomes  so  com- 
pletely a habit — a second  nature  ; and,  as  if  the  pre- 
sence of  an  epaulette  rendered  them  uneasy,  they  all 
withdrew  into  the  back  or  more  obscure  portion  of 
the  cavern,  leaving  him  and  their  two  leaders  together. 

^‘Oh!  Basil — Usakoff — my  friends,  if  indeed  I 
may  yet  dare  to  call  you  so,  and  live,”  said  Balgonie, 
in  a voice  that  was  liroken  by  emotion,  “ for  what 
rash  and  dreadful  purpose  do  I find  you  and  these 
unfortunate  fellows  here  ? ” 

You,  and  all  Russia  too,  shall  learn  ere  long,” 
replied  Mierowitz  calmly  and  sternly ; yet  with  a 
grave  and  noble  air,  with  which  his  coarse  canvas 
caftan  assorted  oddly. 


THE  WOOD  OF  THE  HO^EY  TREE. 


171 


^‘And  poor  Natalie!”  exclaimed  Balgonie,  in  a 
tone  of  grief  and  reproach;  ‘4aave  you  no  pity  for 
her?” 

“Until  Natalie  informed  me,  I knew  not,  my 
friend,  Carl  Ivanovitch,  that  you  were  the  bearer  of 
that  secret  dispatch,  which  might  have  cost  you  limb 
or  life,  when  it  was  too  late  to  arrest  those  T had  set 
upon  3mur  track.” 

“ Wei],  certainly,  I was  not  much  indebted  to  the 
good  offices  of  your  rogue,  Uodatchkine.” 

“The  Corporal’s  orders  were  simply  to  abstract 
the  document,  and  bring  it  to  me ; not  to  slay  its 
bearer,  unless  such  a catastrophe  became  unavoid- 
able.” 

“ He  fell  into  his  own  snare—  a dark  and  deadly 
one.” 

“ Happily  you  escaped  it ; and  I have  saved  two 
hundred  silver  roubles,  for  the  service  of  the  Em- 
peror.” 

“ Who  do  you  mean  ? ” asked  Balgonie,  in  a 
^ whisper. 

“ Ivan — the  Prisoner  of  Schlusselburg  I ” ex- 
claimed Usakoff,  with  enthusiasm. 

“Alas!”  added  Balgonie,  “you  court  but  your 
own  destruction.” 

“ Think  not  so;  but  join  us,  and  share  our  perils 
and  our  glory,”  replied  the  other. 

“ I am  bound  by  allegiance  to  the  Empress.” 

You  are  but  a toolinher  hands,  Carl  Balgonie,” 


172 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Perhaps  so ; but  one  with  a devilish  sharp  edge, 
I hope,”  replied  Balgonie,  who  felt  only  genuine 
sorrow;  and  a silence  of  nearly  a minute  ensued. 

The  manner  and  voice  of  Basil  Mierowitz  were 
singularly  soft  and  winning,  yet  he  was  bold  and 
resolute ; and  though  a young  man,  he  had  all  the 
free  and  easy  bearing  of  a courtly  soldier,  blended 
with  something  of  the  calm  severity  of  a priest — a 
manner  that  was  very  impressive. 

The  Polish  and  Cossack  blood  that  mingled  in 
the  veins  of  Appollo  TJsakofiP  gave  a freer  and  bolder, 
perhaps  a wilder,  bearing  and  style  of  language ; hia 
nose  was  aquiline,  and  expressed  fierceness  of  dis- 
position ; yet  his  features  otherwise  were  essentially 
delicate  and  noble,  and  his  eyes  were  strangely  beau- 
tiful in  colour  and  variety  of  expression.  They  were 
dark  gray,  encircled  by  a ring  of  light,  clear  brown ; 
and  when  he  spoke,  or  became  excited,  the  iris  con- 
tracted and  expanded,  as  the  blood  fiowed  and  ebbed 
in  his  fiery  and  enthusiastic  heart,  for  he  was  a grand- 
son of  the  Hetman  Mazeppa — that  Pole,  whose 
story  is  so  well  known,  and  who,  after  being  bound 
naked  on  a wild  and  maddened  horse,  to  punish  him 
for  having  an  intrigue  with  a noble  lady  of  his  own 
country,  was  carried  by  his  steed  through  woods  and 
‘ wastes,  and  herds  of  wolves  and  bears,  into  the  heart 
of  the  Ukraine,  where  he  lived  to  become  the  prince 
and  leader  of  those  wild  Cossacks  who  dwell  upon 
fhe  banks  of  the  Dnieper. 


THE  WOOD  OE  THE  HONEY  TREE.  1^3 

Sleeping  in  a cavern,  among  rough  soldiers,  on  a 
bed  of  dried  leaves  and  moss,  had  not  improved 
either  the  costume  or  the  appearance  of  Natalie 
Mierowna.  With  pain  and  sorrow, — almost  with 
agony, — Charlie  Balgonie  could  perceive  how  her 
once  rich  dress  of  yellow  silk,  with  its  trimmings  of 
narrow  ermine,  was  faded  and  soiled — even  tattered 
and  worn ; her  laces  and  her  soft  hair  alike  dishevel- 
led and  uncared  for ; and  that  already  had  a hunted 
and  haggard  expression  been  imparted  to  her  beauti- 
ful eyes,  and  soft,  pale,  delicate  face.  Anger  and 
pride  alone  remained ; but  both  were  for  a time  sub- 
dued by  the  sudden  presence  of  Balgonie,  and  the 
love  she  was  compelled  to  repress  outwardly,  at 
least,  when  before  so  many  eyes. 

Katinka,  the  sturdy  Polish  attendant,  who  loved 
Natalie  dearly,  alone  seemed  unimpaired  by  the 
hardships  of  a forest  life. 

Concerning  the  secret  dispatch  of  the  woman, 
Catharine  Christianowna,  to  the  Governor  of  Schlus- 
selburg,” said  Usakoff,  resuming  the  subject  of  con- 
versation, “ you,  Carl,  are  perhaps  aware  of  its  con- 
tents ? ” 

“Yes,”  replied  Balgonie,  and  then  paused. 

“ Say  on,  my  friend,”  said  Usakoff ; “ we  can  hear 
anything  now.” 

“ They  were  to  the  effect,  that  a scheme  had  been 
formed  to  free  the  Unknown  Person  in  Schusselburg, 
and  that  he  was  not  to  be  permitted  to  fall  alive 


174 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


into  the  hands  of  any  one  who  came  to  seek  him.^^ 
“ Savage  orders,  which  there  can  he  no  mistaking.” 

Orders  which  Bernikoff  is  quite  capable  of  ful- 
filling,” added  Mierowitz  in  a sad  and  stern  voice, 
wdiile  their  listening  followers  burst  into  low  and 
whispered,  but  fierce,  imprecations  against  the  Em- 
press. 

Bernikoff  is  a man  wdthout  one  human  sym- 
pathy,” said  Basil. 

“ And  no  marvel  is  it  ? ” exclaimed  Usakoff,  while 
the  strange  light  already  described  gleamed  in  his 
dark  grey  eyes;  ‘^his  mother,  like  a true  Tartar 
woman,  is  said  to  have  anointed  her  breast  daily 
with  blood,  as  she  suckled  him — even  as  Dion  tells 
us  the  mother  of  Caligula  did,  that  her  child  might, 
in  manhood,  be  merciless.” 

Vlasfief  they  stigmatised  as  the  son  of  a goat,” 
being  originally  a boy  of  the  great  foundling  Hos- 
pital at  Moscow,  where,  when  the  increase  of  child- 
ren became  so  great  that  nurses  could  not  be  found, 
the  lacteal  food  of  animals  was  introduced,  and  a 
herd  of  goats  adopted  as  wet-nurses  for  the  estab- 
lishment. 

“ Carl,”  said  Basil,  taking  the  hand  of  Balgonie, 
‘‘  Natalie  has  told  me  all.” 

^^All!” 

Yes — all  that  passed  in  Longa.  Dear  Natalie 
has  never  had  a secret  from  me.” 

‘‘  And  you  forgive  me  ? ” said  Balgonie  earnestly. 


THE  WOOD  OF  THE  HONEY  TREE.  17^ 

I do — but  on  tliis  condition.’’ 

“ Oh  name  it,  Basil ! ” 

That  if  you  do  not  join  us,  you  will,  at  least, 
not  actively  oppose  our  scheme.” 

‘‘  1 scarcely  know  what  it  is.” 

Know  this,  then,”  replied  the  other  emphati- 
cally, yet  softly,  that  on  its  success  depends  the 
success  of  your  love ; for  if  it  fails,  then  all  our 
lives  are  lost ! ” 

You  say  that  you  love  my  cousin,  Natalie  ? ” 
said  young  IJsakoff,  in  a somewhat  loftier  tone. 

With  all  my  heart — with  all  my  soul,  I do  ! ” 
replied  Balgonie,  pressing  a hand  of  Natalie  be- 
tween his  own. 

Yet,  Carl,  if  you  valued  generosity  and  loved 
piety — if  you  loved  glory  and  honor,  as  a soldier 
should,  you  would  risk  the  loss  even  of  her, — ^yea, 
give  her  up,  if  necessary, — and  join  us  ! ” 

What  w^ould  either  life  or  glory  be  after  such 
a sacrifice  ? Ah,  my  friend,  you  never  loved  as  I 
do  ! ” replied  Charlie,  with  some  irritation  of  man- 
ner. 

Perhaps ; but  I have  always  thought  how 
grandly  terrible  a figure  was  made  by  Mohammed 
the  Great,  when,  on  a stage,  before  his  discontented 
army,  he  struck  off  the  head  of  a favorite  Sultana 
to  convince  his  soldiers  that  he  preferred  glory  to 
love.” 

Cousin,  cousin,”  said  Natalie,  who  felt  all  thq 


176 


THE  SECRET  EISPATCH. 


peril  and  delicacy  of  her  lover’s  position,  you  talk 
thus  to-day,  when  last  night  you  shed  tears — ^yes, 
bitter  tears  for  the  loss  of  your  sister.  We  were 
all  taken  prisoners  together,  Carl — ^my  poor  father, 
Mariolizza,  and  I.  Bound  with  cords-, — see,  the 
marks  are  on  me  still,”  she  added,  showing  her 
white  wrists,  while  her  dark  eyes  filled  with  a dusky 
fire, — ^^we  were  conveyed  in  a covered  kabitka 
towards  St.  Petersburg,  on  the  way  to  wiiich  it 
broke  down,  in  a wood  near  Paulovsk,  not  far  from 
the  outer  walls  of  the  imperial  gardens.  There,  in 
the  confusion,  I was  enabled  to  escape,  by  the  aid 
of  the  gipsy  girl  Olga,  who,  hoping  some  such 
chance  might  occur,  had  followed  us  afoot  from 
Louga;  and  through  her  further  knowiedge  and 
assistance,  I was  enabled  to  join  my  brother  Basil 
here.” 

My  dear  old  father — and  my  soft  and  tender 
Mariolizza — a blow  must  be  rapidly  struck  if  we 
would  save  them  from  greater  horrors  than  those 
they  now  endure  ! ” exclaimed  Basil ; “ the  die  has 
been  cast  now : and  if  I cannot  save  them  and  our 
legitimate  Emperor,  we  can  at  least  all  perish  to- 
gether.” 

“ Dangers  menace  you  closely ; the  roads  around 
the  fortress  are  patrolled,  and  gun-boats  watch  the 
shores  of  the  lake.  A coin  of  Ivan  found  in  a tea- 
house  ” 

‘‘  Malediction — ^yes  ’twas  I,  Carl,  who  dropped  it 


THE  WOOD  OF  THE  HONEY  TREE. 


177 


there,”  exclaimed  Basil : well,  and  this  coin  ? ” 

Has  roused  all  the  suspicions  of  Bernikoff ; and 
he  knows  that  you  and  your  cousin  have  deserted 
from  your  posts  in  Livonia.” 

Already,  does  he  know  of  this  ? ” 

Yes,  with  many  other  details.” 

‘"Then,”  replied  Basil  Micro witz,  with  growing 
sternness,  “ we  have  not  an  hour  to  loose.  Who  in- 
formed him  ? ” 

“ Lieutenant-General  Weymarn,  by  a special  mes- 
senger, while  I was  loitering  at  Louga.” 

“ So,  so ! By  our  Lady  of  Kazan,  we  must  be 
prompt  in  action.  I have  cruised  thrice  round 
Schlusselburg  disguised  as  a fisherman,  and  know 
well  all  the  approaches.” 

Basil,  Usakoff,  I implore  you  by  all  you  hold 
dear  on  earth  and  sacred  in  Heaven  to  pause  while 
there  is  yet  time — to  abandon  your  wild  scheme,  and 
make  your  peace,  if  possible,  with  the  Empress.” 

“ You  were  right  to  add  ‘ if  possible,’  my  friend,” 
j replied  the  other  calmly  but  bitterly.  “Already 
compromised  by  desertion,  my  father  and  betrothed 
wife  chained  in  a fortress  by  the  Neva,  what  terms 
would  Catharine  offer  us  ? Carl  Ivanovitch,”  he 
added,  with  a lofty  smile,  “ I do  not  press  you  to 
join  us,  or  seek  to  lure  you  into  the  dangers  of  an 
enterprise  the  enthusiasm  of  which  you  cannot  share. 
I do  not  seek  even  to  turn  your  presence  as  a trusted 
staff  officer  in  Schlusselburg  to  account,  though  it 


178 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


might  further  our  objects,  and  be  the  means,  per- 
haps, by  strategy,  of  saving  many  a valuable  life. 
Still  less  do  I desire  to  turn  to  account  your  intimacy 
with  the  young  Emperor  Ivan,  though  I envy  you 
that  great  privilege.  Even  in  the  love  I bear  my 
sister  (though  it  might  tempt  you  to  cast  your  lot 
with  us — with  her  shall  I say  ? ),  I leave  you  un- 
questioned and  free.” 

“ I thank  you,  Basil,”  said  Balgonie  sadly,  and 
with  a lieightened  colour,  caused  by  irrepressible  an- 
noyance at  the  last  remark  of  Mierowitz. 

But  we  have  all  sworn  before  the  altar  of  our 
Lady  of  Kazan,  and  the  image  of  St.  Sergius,  to 
devote  our  lives  to  the  matter  in  hand ; so  retreat 
is  impossible — advice  and  entreaty  alike  unavail- 
ing.” 

Balgonie  felt  an  acute  pang  on  hearing  this ; for 
he  knew  that  in  Russia  no  place  was  esteemed  as 
more  holy  than  the  churcli  of  our  Lady  of  Kazan  in 
St.  Petersburg.  Around  its  shrine — the  sanctum 
sanctorum  of  which  no  woman  has  ever  entered — 
are  the  keys  of  conquered  cities,  the  banners  of  a 
thousand  slaughtered  armies,  and  the  batons  and 
sabres  of  their  leaders — the  Frenchman,  the  Turk, 
the  Pole,  the  Persian,  and  the  Dane,  the  Swede  and 
the  German ; and  he  knew,  too,  that  no  image,  to 
the  Muscovite  mind,  is  more  sacred  than  that  of  St. 
Sergius — the  same  absurd  idol  which  the  Kazan 
cplumit  bore  with  them  at  the  battle  of  the  Alma, 


THE  WOOD  OF  THE  HONEY  TREE. 


179 


and  displayed  in  vain  to  the  advancing  bayonets  of 
old  Sir  Colin’s  Highland  Brigade. 

The  blow  once  struck,”  resumed  Basil,  “ we  shall 
be  joined  by  the  Cossacks  of  the  Ukraine  and  the 
Don,  among  whom  we  have  many  impatient  adher- 
ents, and  by  all  who  hold  of  the  Houses  of  Bruns 
wick- Wolf enbuttel,  of  Holstein  Gottorp,  and  of  all 
who  hate  Anhalt  Zerbst ; all  Bussia  will  soon  follow, 
from  the  shores  of  the  Black  Sea  to  those  of  the 
White — from  Bevel  to  the  Ural  Mountains.  We 
have  not  forgotten  the  reign  of  Elizabeth:  how 
many  noses  were  slit,  how  many  foreheads  were 
branded,  how  many  ears  cropped,  and  tongues 
shortened,  and  how  many  eyes  were  darkened  for 
ever  during  the  time  of  tyranny ; how  many  backs 
flayed  by  the  knout ; how  many  nobles  banished  to 
Siberia,  or  drowned  in  prison  vaults  by  the  swollen 
waters  of  the  Beva.  Pure  nationality  is  dying  now ; 
but  we  must  revive  Bussia — not  as  it  is  ruled  by  a 
lascivious  woman  and  her  jealous  lovers,  but  Holy 
Bussia  of  Peter  the  Great — strong,  invincible,  and 
the  terror  alike  of  the  Eastern  and  Western  world. 
Let  us  save  our  country  from  those  who  oppress  it, 
and  replace  upon  its  throne  the  Grand  Duke,  the 
Czar — the  Emperor  Ivan ; for  the  right  given  by 
God  and  by  inheritance,  can  never  be  destroyed ! ” 
A murmur  of  applause  from  his  followers  suc- 
ceeded this  outburst  (which  we  can  render  but  feebly 
in  English),  and  they  clashed  their  weapons  in  ap^ 


180 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


proval,  while,  fired  by  her  brother’s  energy,  Natalie 
sung  a verse  of  a well  known  Russian  song : — 

" Now,  as  of  old,  the  sabre’s  ready. 

And  its  might  they’ll  feel  afar, 

When  hut  three  short  words  are  utter’d, 

God,  our  Country,  and  the  Cza/r!  ” 

Without  cannon,  you  cannot  mean  to  assault  a 
place  so  strong  as  Schlusselburg,  fortified  as  it  has 
been  by  all  the  skill  of  Todlebin  ? ” said  Balgonie, 
after  a pause. 

Ask  me  not  what  we  mean  to  do,  Carl : for  your 
own  sake,  my  dear  friend,  the  less  you  know  of  us, 
and  of  our  plans,  the  better.  We  shall  come  upon 
you  all  when  you  least  expect  us,  and  in  that  hour 
take  no  heed  of  what  you  see  or  hear.  Mix  your- 
self up  with  it  as  little  as  you  can : if  we  fail,  we 
perish  in  our  failure ; if  we  triumph,  and  Ivan  is  re- 
placed upon  his  throne,  be  assured  that  Basil  Mier- 
owitz  will  not  forget  the  lover  of  his  sister — the 
comrade  of  many  a brave  and  happy  day  with  the 
Regiment  of  Smolensko.  Now  adieu — and  come 
hither  no  more,  lest  your  steps  be  watched.” 

Balgonie  pressed  the  hands  of  his  two  friends, 
whom  he  viewed  as  fated  and  foredoomed  men ; he 
kissed  Natalie  with  a tenderness  that  was  alike  sor- 
rowful and  despairing,  for  he  trembled  in  his  heart 
lest  he  should  never  see  her  more ; and,  in  another 
moment  or  so,  like  one  in  a bewildering  dream,  he 
had  descended  the  rope  ladder,  and  was  traversing 


THE  WOOD  OF  THE  HONEY  TREE. 


181 


the  forest — the  Wood  of  the  Honey  Tree — ^forget- 
ful or  oblivious  of  whether  he  was  watched  or  not. 

He  foresaw  but  woe  and  ruin  now ; and  proceeded 
slowly  back  to  Schlusselburg,  with  his  mind  a prey 
to  doubt,  anxiety,  and  dread  of  what  might  be  the 
sequel  to  the  impending  catastrophe.  He  felt  as- 
sured of  one  thing  only — that  a deed,  bold,  reckless, 
and  desperate,  would  be  the  result  of  his  friend’s 
desertion  from  Livonia,  their  political  rancour,  and 
personal  desire  for  vengeance  on  the  Empress  and 
her  favorites. 

In  that  deed,  and  its  too  probable  failure,  he  fore- 
saw the  destruction  of  his  love ; and  he  felt  bitterly 
that  rather  than  have  known  and  lost  Natalie,  it 
would  have  been  better  had  fate  drowned  him  when 
the  Palatine  ship  was  burned,  or  shot  him  when 
warring  in  Silesia! 


CHAPTER  XVIIL 


DOUBT  AND  DREAD. 

•Jj^EARLT  all  the  events  which  followed  the 
secret  visit  of  Balgonie  to  the  conspirators 
will  be  found  in  the  more  recent  histories  of  Russia, 
and  in  the  manifestos  published  by  the  Empress 
Catharine  at  the  time — especially  her  oukaz  subse- 
quent to  the  revolt  of  Basil  Mierowitz. 

On  returning  to  Schlusselburg,  Balgonie  found 
the  Governor,  Colonel  Bernikoff,  in  a very  bad  hu- 
mor indeed.  The  Grand  Chancellor  had  recently 
sent  him  a prisoner,  with  a note  to  the  effect  that 
he  wrote  verses,  and  was  otherwise  a dangerous  fel- 
low— to  keep  him  for  a week  or  two,  and  then  get 
rid  of  him.  He  had  thrice  sent  to  the  Chancellor, 
to  learn  under  what  name  the  man  was  to  be  huried^ 
for  the  fellow  was  dead  now — so  much  had  the  damp 
atmosphere  of  the  lower  vaults  disagreed  with  his 
poetical  temperament;  but  no  answer  liad  been  re- 
turned, which  was  very  annoying.  So  Bernikoff, 
whose  patience  was  never  very  extensive,  was  fu- 
rious ; but  he  strove  to  soothe  his  ruffled  feelings 
by  several  enormous  pinches  of  the  sharp  snuff  of 

Beresovski,  from  the  box  which — as  we  have  before 
182 


DOUBT  AND  DREAD. 


183 


hinted — had  been  found  in  tlie  fob  of  the  late  Peter 
III.;  and  by  batooning,  or  beating  with  his  cane,  the 
Cossack  Jagouski,  whom  he  had  suddenly  detected 
in  the  act  of  praying  secretly  before  the  little  image 
of  St.  Sergius,  which  was  his — Colonel  Bernikoff’s 
— own  peculiar  and  particular  property. 

By  the  old  laws  of  Muscovy,  to  be  found  worship- 
ping at  an  image,  erected  by,  or  the  property  of  an- 
otlier,  designing  thereby  to  have  a share  in  the  favor 
of  the  saint  it  represented,  without  being  at  any 
expense,  was  punishable  by  a fine,  to  refund  the 
owner  some  part  of  the  money  laid  out  for  the  said 
image ; ” but  as  the  poor  Cossack  had  not  a copper 
denusca  wherewith  to  bless  himself,  the  Governor 
took  it  out  of  his  back  and  shoulders  (scarcely  healed 
after  his  recent  knouting),  with  the  aid  of  a knotted 
walking  cane. 

^^^To  steal  and  to  lie,’  according  to  Bulharyn,  a 
famous  Russian  writer,  ^are  the  two  auxiliary  verbs 
of  our  language,’  ” said  the  Colonel,  panting  with 
^exertion,  as  the  Cossack  crept  away  with  a glance  of 
subdued  ferocity  in  his  stealthy  eyes ; we  take  all 
that  for  granted ; but  this  slave  has  been  stealing 
the  interest  of  my  saint  for  himself  ! ” 

He  ordered  an  extra  supply  of  wax  candles  to  be 
liglited  before  the  image,  and  then  he  knelt,  bowed, 
and  muttered 

Holy  St.  Sergius,  heed  not  the  prayers  of  that 
rascal ; he  is  only  a vile  serf,  a slave,  a Cossack  from 


184: 


THE  eiiCRET  DISPATCH. 


Ukraine.  Thou  hast  been  very  good  to  me,  and 
shalt  be  treated  handsomely.  Candles  of  the  finest 
wax  shall  burn  before  thee  all  night.  I will  love 
and  pray  for  thee,  so  do  thou  protect  and  intercede 
for  me,  most  holy  Sergius  ? ” 

And  so  he  prayed  till  the  dinner  drum  beat ; and 
then,  muttering  an  oath  as  he  tripped  over  his  sabre, 
the  old  savage  hobbled  away,  to  commit  at  least  two 
of  the  seven  deadly  sins  at  table. 

^^No  tidings  yet,  Carl  Ivanovitch,  of  those  trai- 
tors ! ” said  Bernikoff,  when  he  had  somewhat  re- 
covered his  breath,  after  a deep  draught  of  quass, 
the  froth  of  which  adhered  to  his  grisly  mustachio ; 
‘‘the  Captain  Ylasfief,  and  my  faithful  friend  Tsche- 
kin,  with  forty  picked  Cossacks,  and  a clever  guide 

“ Nicholas  Paulo vitch,  I presume.” 

“ The  same,”  continued  Bernikoff,  with  a fierce 
grimace  on  his  lips  and  a cruel  leer  in  his  eyes,  as  he 
masticated  a huge  mouthful  of  green  horsch  with 
beef  and  eggs : the  same,  sir, — and  w^hat  then  ? ” 

' “ Nothing,  Excellency  ; but  this  ouJcha  of  ster- 

let is  excellent.  Well,  these  and  the  forty  Cos- 
sacks   ” 

“ Are  scouring  all  the  roads  between  this  and  St. 
Petersburg  on  one  fiank,  and  between  this  and 
North  Ladoga  on  the  other ; so  the  cursed  Asiatics 
cannot  escape  me.” 

“ Who  will  betray  them  to  you  ? ” asked  Balgonie, 


DOUBT  AND  DREAD. 


185 


making  a terrible  effort  to  appear  calm  and  uncon- 
cerned, as  he  played  with  his  sword  knot  and  the 
tassels  of  his  sash,  and  forgot  to  eat. 

“ Who  ? ” exclaimed  Col.  Bernikoff,  grinding  his 
teeth,  and  eating  very  fast.  Their  own  friends — 
their  own  dear  comrades — adherents,  which  you 
will.  Russia  is  full  of  people,  yea  of  many  nations. 
The  Empress  can  reckon  her  faithful  slaves  by  mil- 
lions ; yet,  when  a Russian  hath  his  hat  on  his 
head,  its  rim  contains  the  only  friend  on  whom  he 
can  rely.” 

“ This  is  a severe  libel  on  your  country,  surely, 
Excellency.” 

’ Tis  truth  though ; so  Basil  Micro witz,  Usakoff, 
and  the  rest,  are  all  doomed  men.  No  one  was  ever 
lost  on  a straight  road ; thus  the  soldier  who  diverges 
from  the  straight  line  of  duty  must  speedily  find 
himself  face  to  face  with  degradation  and  death. 
Punishment  to  those  traitors  will  be  swift  and  sure  ! 
So,  I only  fear  that  the  Grand  Chancellor  will  never 
give  me  the  pleasure  of  having  them  under  my  judi- 
cious care  in  Schlusselburg.  We  have  certain  old 
vaults,  built  below  the  tide  mark  by  Ivan  the  Terri- 
ble, for  some  of  those  people  of  Novgorod  who 
leagued  with  the  King  of  Poland.  They  are  always 
full  of  fog ; and  I am  curious  to  know  how  long  an 
able-bodied  prisoner  might  live  there,  or  rather  how 
long  he  would  be  in  dying.  But  excuse  me,  Hospo- 
deen,  I confess  me  to-morrow,  and  there  rings  the 


186 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


bell  for  vespers  already ; ” and  making  many  Greek 
signs  of  the  cross  and  other  genuflexions,  Bernikoff, 
after  having  gorged  himself  at  table,  hurried  away 
to  the  chapel,  where  Father  Chrysostom  ofiiciat- 
ed. 

Charlie  gladly  sought  the  solitude  afforded  by  the 
stockades  and  outworks  of  the  fortress  on  the  side 
towards  the  Lake  of  Ladoga.  There,  as  elsewhere, 
was  of  course,  a chain  of  sentinels ; but  they  did  not 
interrupt  his  lonely  communing  with  himself. 

By  his  interest  in  Natalie,  by  his  deep  love  for 
her,  and  more  than  all,  perhaps,  by  his  recent  visit 
and  interview,  he  already  felt  himself  ^ art  and  part’ 
(to  use  a Scottish  legal  or particeps  criminis^ 

with  the  rash  adherents  of  Ivan.  If  one  of  these 
deserted  the  cause  in  which  they  had  embarked,  then 
would  their  lurking  place  be  at  once  discovered,  and 
the  story  of  his  recent  visit  be  revealed. 

He  dreaded  lest  Bernikoff  and  others  suspected 
his  friendly  interest  in  the  family  of  Count  Miero- 
witz,  and  that  more  might  yet  be  learned  of  it ; thus 
he  would  have  experienced  neither  shock  nor  sur- 
prise, had  he,  at  any  hour,  in  that  land  of  treachery 
and  espionage,  seen  either  Captain  Ylasflef,  Lieuten- 
ant Tschekin,  or  any  other  officer  of  the  fortress,  ad- 
vancing towards  him  sabre  in  hand,  with  an  armed 
party,  to  demand  his  sword,  to  make  him  a prisoner, 
and  march  him  off  to  tlie  same  prison  which  already 
held  the  old  Count  and  Mariolizza,  the  innocent  be- 


doubt  and  dread. 


187 


trothed  of  Basil,  and  might  soon  hold  another,  who 
was  dearer,  still — Natalie ! 

If  1 love  her,”  he  would  say  to  himself  at  times, 

why  should  I shrink  from  sharing  all  that  she  suf- 
fers now — all  she  may  yet  endure  ? Yet  it  would 
be  wiser  to  watch  well  for  her  sake,  and  seek  to  save, 
or  bear  her  away ; but  how — and  where  to  ? ” was 
the  next  bewildering  thought. 

And  the  generous  Basil,  the  fiery  and  chivalrous 
Usakoff,  oh  that  he  might  save  them  too ! He 
mourned  for  Usakoff,  who  was  the  very  soul  of 
honor  and  heroism,  the  worthy  grandson  of  that 
Mazeppa  who,  when  Charles  the  XII.  was  retreat- 
ing from  Pultowa,  swam  the  Borysthenes  by  the 
side  of  the  fugitive  king,  and  of  whom  the  latter 
said  in  the  words  of  a bard  : — 

Of  all  our  band. 

Though  firm  of  heart  and  strong  of  hand. 

In  skirmish,  march,  or  forage,  none 
Can  less  have  said  or  more  have  done 
Than  thee,  Mazeppa  ! on  the  earth 
So  fit  a pair  had  never  birth. 

Since  Alexander’s  day  till  now. 

As  thy  Bucephalus  and  thou  ; 

All  Scythia’s  fame  to  thine  should  yield. 

For  pricking  on  o’er  flood  and  field.” 

So  worthy  of  such  an  ancestor,  was  he,  too,  to 
perish  ? 

This  was,  indeed,  a miserable  mood  of  mind  in 
which  to  pass  the  nights  and  days  of  inactivity — -of 
suspense  and  anxiety  in  which  none  could  share,  in 


188 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


that  strong,  guarded,  and  somewhat  lonely  fortress, 
which  was  washed,  ns  we  have  said,  on  one  side  by 
the  Neva,  and  on  the  other  by  the  Lake  of  Ladoga, 
the  very  ripples  of  whose  waves  sounded  hatefully 
in  the  ears  of  Balgonie. 

Oh,’’  thought  he,  to  be  with  Natalie  on  the 
side  of  a green  and  breezy  Scottish  mountain — on 
any  part  of  the  shore  of  free  and  happy  Britain ! to 
be  with  her  there  in  peace  and  security,  far,  far 
from  this  land  of  suspicion  and  ferocious  despotism, 
of  state  intrigues  and  savage  punishments,  wLere 
every  second  man  is  the  spy  upon,  and  the  betrayer 
of,  his  fellow.” 

“ Britain  he  might  never  see  more ; and  now  he 
found  himself  vaguely  speculating  on  the  probable 
comforts  and  public  amusement  afforded  by  Siberia, 
and  those  growing  cities  of  the  sorrowing  and  the 
banished,  Tobolsk  and  Irkutsk,  on  the  banks  of  the 
Lower  Angara. 

He  feared  to  look  much,  or  often,  towards  the 
distant  Wood  of  the  Honey  Tree,  lest  watchful  eyes 
might  be  upon  him  to  gather  hints  therefrom  ; still 
more  did  he  fear  to  visit  Natalie  again,  lest,  by  do- 
ing so,  he  might  lead  to  the  discovery  and  arrest  of 
all.  So  the  days  and  nights  of  dread,  of  longing, 
and  suspense,  passed  slowly  after  each  other  now. 

The  barriers  of  rank  and  wealth — the  wealth  af- 
forded by  the  Count’s  estates  and  mines,  his  popu- 
lous villages  of  serfs,  and  vast  forests  of  timber — 


DOUBT  AND  DREAD. 


189 


had  all  been  removed  now,  and  Natalie  was  reduced 
to  a level  lower  even  than  her  lover’s;  yet  he  cursed 
the  mad  schemes  that  had  brought  about  such  a 
revolution,  and  tossed  feverishly  and  sleeplessly  on 
his  bed,  when  he  thought  of  Natalie  Mierowna, — 
his  own  loving  and  beloved  Natalie, — so  delicate 
and  so  tender,  with  her  white  soft  skin  and  silky 
hair,  her  earnest  and  beautiful  eyes,  lurking  among 
stern  and  outlawed  soldiers  in  yonder  damp  cavern 
of  the  rocks,  upon  her  bed  of  leaves  and  moss ; at 
the  mercy,  perhaps,  of  any  adherent  of  Basil’s,  who, 
to  save  his  own  head,  might  prove  a traitor  to  them 
all ! This  dread  was  ever  before  him. 

The  whole  affair  reminded  him  of  some  of  the 
old  Scottish  raids,  or  Jacobite  plots,  of  years  long 
passed  away ; and  it  was  fated  to  resemble  the  for- 
mer more  strongly  in  some  of  its  features,  as  the 
dark  sequel  will  show. 

The  guards  and  sentinels  at  Schlusselburg  were 
doubled  ; the  patrols  were  incessant  by  land,  while 
on  the  lake  the  gun-boats  of  Admiral  Mackenzie 
cruised  near  the  walls ; the  canons  were  loaded ; the 
watch-words  changed  sometimes  twice  within  four- 
and-twenty  hours  ; and  the  general  state  of  prepara- 
tion for  a sudden  attack  was  unremitting.  But  time 
passed  on  quietly  until  the  night  of  the  fifteenth  of 
September,  when  the  crowning  catastrophe  came. 


CHAPTEK  XIX. 


' THE  NIGHT  OF  THE  15TH  SEPTEMBER. 

WfHE  past  day  had  been  unusually  gloomy  for 
the  season.  The  sun  had  set  in  fiery  clouds 
beyond  the  spires  of  St.  Petersburg.  The  night 
was  without  a moon,  and  a strong  east  wind  rplled 
the  waters  of  the  Ladoga  in  billows  of  inky  hue 
against  the  massive  walls  of  the  fortress  in  foam  and 
fury  on  one  side ; while  on  the  other,  the  waters  of 
the  Xeva,  swollen  by  recent  rains,  gurgled  and  chafed 
round  the  mouldy  and  moss-grown  piers  of  the  draw- 
bridge. 

The  wind  moaned  with  a sullen  sound  past  the 
mouths  of  the  cannon,  and  whistled  drearily  through 
the  deep  embrasures  and  the  loopholes  for  musketry 
in  the  casemates.  Thunder  had  been  heard  at  times, 
but  afar;  Elias,  as  the  Russians  poetically  phrase  it, 
was  driving  his  chariot  among  the  stars.  Lightning 
had  reddened  all  the  lake,  and  cast  the  weird  shadow 
of  the  castle  athw^art  it  for  an  instant ; and,  that  a 
complete  and  melodramatic  omen  of  impending  evil 
might  not  be  wanting,  a huge  sea-bird  had  perched 
upon  the  castle  clock,  and  forcing  round  the  hands, 

struck  midnight  four  hours  before  the  proper  time, 
190 


ME  NIGHT  OF  THE  15TH  OF  SEPTEMBER.  191 

Since  morning  roll-call,  Jagouski,  the  knouted, 
beaten,  and  ill-used  Cossack,  had  been  missing ; he 
had  quitted  the  fortress  on  some  trivial  pretense  and 
had  not  since  returned ; patrols  had  seen  nothing  of 
him.  Then  Colonel  Bernikoff  was  more  than  ever 
on  the  alert ; but  Balgonie,  who  now  deemed  any- 
thing better  than  the  torture  of  suspense,  had  gone 
weary  and  feverishly  to  bed,  to  court  for  a time  the 
happiness  of  oblivion,  after  having  spent  nearly  the 
entire  day  upon  the  lake  with  an  armed  boat’s  crew, 
patrolling  by  water. 

From  sleep,  however,  a sudden  sound  aroused  him ; 
he  looked  at  his  watch,  and  saw  that  the  hands  in- 
dicated twelve  o’clock,  midnight. 

What  had  he  heard  ? 

In  another  moment  the  sound  came  again — the 
drums  were  beating  to  arms ! He  heard  the  clamor 
of  hoarse  Muscovite  voices  in  court  and  corridor; 
the  clanging  of  the  castle  bell ; and  he  saw  the  gleam 
of  torches  reddening  the  old  black  walls  and  towers, 
and  flaring  on  the  grated  windows  as  they  were  borne 
to  and  fro. 

His  heart  was  beating  with  wild  anxiety  as  he 
threw  on  his  staff  uniform,  belted  his  sabre  about 
him,  placed  his  pistols  in  his  girdle,  and  hurried  forth 
to  meet — it  might  be  to  cross  blades — with  tlie  only 
friends  he  had  in  Russia ! 

As  he  crossed  the  castle-yard  by  torchlight,  he 
could  perceive  that  the  Cossacks,  clad  in  their  short 


192 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


blue  jackets,  red  loose  breeches,  short  boots,  and  tall, 
black,  woolen  busbies,  were  falling  into  their  ranks 
with  musketoon  and  sabre ; and  that  the  gunners 
were  standing  by  their  cannon  with  port-fires  lighted : 
the  latter  casting  a pale,  ghastly,  ana  unearthly  glare 
upon  the  yawning  embrasures,  the  walls  of  the  fort- 
ress, and  on  their  own  stolid  visages,  which  were 
pale  and  cadaverous  as  those  of  people  usually  who 
are  hastily  summoned  from  sleep  in  the  night. 

As  a staff  officer  who  had  no  particular  post, 
Charlie  Balgonie  knew  that  his  duty  attached  him 
chiefiy  to  Bernikoff , whom  he  now  met  hurrying  forth 
in  uniform,  with  a great  cocked  hat  thrust  angrily 
oyer  his  cunning  and  twinkling  eyes,  which  were 
sparkling  with  anger,  while  every  hair  of  his  grizz- 
led moustachioes,  though  these  were  long  and  snaky, 
bristled  with  excitement.  There  was  a dangerous 
pallor  in  his  visage ; his  square  jaw  looked  still  more 
tiger-like  in  contour,  as  his  teeth  were  clenched ; and 
he  had  his  sabre  drawn. 

By  his  side  were  his  two  favorite  brother  officers, 
who — ^in  face,  form,  and  bearing — bore  indications 
of  being  each,  originally,  a serf  of  the  lowest,  basest, 
and  most  unthinking  kind — Captain  Ylasfief,  cruel 
and  hollow-hearted,  with  his  unfathomable  smile ; 
and  Lieutenant  Tschekin,  the  slimy,  savage,  and  un- 
scrupulous Muscovite.  With  these  came  several 
officers  of  the  Cossack  guard,  with  their  elevated 
eyebrows,  black  mustachioes,  their  keen  features. 


rnGUT  OF  THE  15TH  OF  SEPTEMBER.  193 


the  plumes  and  cockades  in  their  black  fur  caps,  and 
their  glittering  costumes,  forming  altogether  a strik- 
ing and  picturesque  group,  when  seen  by  the  light 
of  several  torches,  which  streamed  through  the  deep 
and  small  arch,  or  doorway,  of  the  keep  in  which 
Ivan  was  confined. 

The  portcullis  of  this  tower  was  up ; and  Balgonie 
could  perceive  its  row  of  lower  bars,  like  a line  of 
black  fangs  in  an  open  jaw,  between  him  and  the 
outline  of  the  lighted  archway. 

^^What  is  the  matter.  Colonel  Bernikoff,’’  ask- 
ed Balgonie ; what  is  the  cause  of  all  this 
alarm  ? ” 

Matter  enough ! We  have  had  sax  alerte — the 
place  seems  to  be  invested  by  troops — Infantry  of 
the  Line,  by  all  the  devils — the  head  of  a column — 
look  for  yourself,  Balgonie ! ” exclaimed  Bernikoff, 
with  an  oath. 

To  omit  the  Christian  name  of  a person  addressed, 
and  that  of  his  father,  also,  is  a direct  insult  in 
Russia ; but  Balgonie  heeded  it  not  then.  He  hur- 
ried to  the  curtain  wall  which  faced  the  landside, 
the  outer  gate,  and  draw-bridge  and  then,  by  the 
light  of  a torch,  he  could  see  that  which  certainly 
seemed  to  be  the  head  of  a column — a front  rank 
of  nearly  fifty  men,  clad  in  the  hideous  uniform 
then  worn  by  the  Russian  army,  before  it  was 
altered,  a few  years  after,  by  the  superior  taste  of 
the  notorious  Major  Semple  Lisle,  a Scottish  adven- 


194 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


turer,*  who  was  well  known  as  a lounger  about  St. 
James’s  Park,  London,  in  1804.  Their  coats  were 
green,  lined  and  faced  with  red,  very  tight  in  the 
body,  with  preposterously  long  skirts,  tight  breeches, 
and  boots  to  the  knees,  with  cocked  hats,  having 
long  flannel  flaps  to  cover  the  ears  in  Winter. 

By  the  light  of  the  same  torch,  Balgonie  could 
see  the  bayonets  flxed ; and  that  two  officers,  with 
their  sabres  drawn,  and  a drummer,  were  in  front  of 
them  little  line.  Having  possession  of  the  parole 
and  countersign,  which,  no  doubt,  had  been  betrayed 
to  them  by  the  absent  Jagouski,  the  whole  party 
had  contrived  to  delude  the  Putparooschick  (sub- 
lieutenant) in  charge  of  the  outer  guard,  and  were 
now  past  the  first  barrier,  and  had  actually  taken 
possession  of  the  drawbridge,  which  they  had  lowered 
across  the  Neva.  The  gate  and  guns  of  the  second 
barrier  were  yet  to  be  forced  or  passed  ; and  thus 
these  midnight  visitors  were  in  a species  of  trap. 

Too  well  could  Balgonie  recognise  in  the  two 
officers — Basil  Mierowitz,  wearing  the  familiar  uni- 
form of  the  Regiment  of  Smolensko  ; and  TJsakoff, 
in  the  gay  trappings  of  the  Grenadiers  of  Valiko- 
lutz ; and  now,  for  the  second  time,  their  drummer 
beat  a chamade^  or  summons  for  a parley,  but  as 
yet  there  was  no  response. 

Balgonie  hastened  after  Bernikoff  and  the  other 

* Vide  Life  of  Major  J.  G.  Semple  Lisle,  written  by  him- 
self, London,  1800.  Printed  for  W.  Stewart,  194,  Piccadilly.'* 


THE  NIGHT  OF  THE  15TH  OF  SEPTEMBER.  195 


officers.  They  had  now  ascended  to  the  chamber  o£ 
the  unfortunate  Ivan,  from  whose  presence  they  had 
somewhat  roughly  expelled  the  chaplain.  Father 
Chrysostom.  On  entering,  he  found  that  the  royal 
recluse  had  sprung  from  bed — inspired  by  natural 
alarm,  on  finding  his  chamber  suddenly  entered  at 
midnight,  and  full  of  armed  men ; but  Ivan  mani- 
fested no  indignation — he  was  too  gentle,  too  sub- 
dued, and  completely  broken  in  spirit  for  that. 

His  singularly  beautiful  face  was  very  pale  ; there 
was  a strange  calmness  in  his  manner ; and  whatever 
he  thought  or  anticipated,  there  was  more  of  calm 
inquiry  than  of  fear  in  his  tone  and  in  the  expres- 
sion of  his  fine  soft  eyes.  Over  his  night-dress  he 
had  thrown  a robe-de-chambre  of  fine  scarlet  cloth 
edged  with  white  ermine  ; and  in  this  attire,  with 
his  long  hair  and  delicate  features,  so  chastened  in 
expression  by  long  solitude  and  complete  seclusion 
from  the  outer  world,  he  seemed  more  like  a tall 
handsome  woman,  than  a young  man  of  three  and 
twenty  years. 

What  is  this  you  tell  me.  Colonel  Bernikoff,”  he 
was  asking,  as  Balgonie  entered  ; ^‘my  unhappy  life 
threatened,  say  you  ? ” 

Even  so,”  said  Bernikoff  hoarsely,  while  avert- 
ing his  stealthy  eyes,  from  the  young  man’s  open 
and  earnest  face ; even  so,  Ivan  Antonovitch ; but, 
your  death  will  not  be  of  our  seeking.” 

Whose  then,  whose  then  ? ” 


196 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Your  friends.” 

Oh,  what  dreadful  paradox  is  this  ? ” asked  the 
Prince  calmly;  ^^must  I die,  even  as  Demetrius 
died  ? ” 

Yes,”  replied  the  other  hoarsely. 

“ And  wherefore  ? ” 

“ There  are  those  without  the  gates  who  seek 
you,  and  you  must  not  fall  alive  into  their  hands,” 
said  Captain  Ylasfief  sternly,  as  he  felt  the  point  of 
his  sabre  with  a finger. 

Alas  ! I do  not  understand  who  can  come  to 
seek  me  ! ” replied  the  poor  Prince,  shuddering 
now,  while  an  expression  of  horror  began  to  spread 
over  lus  fine  face, — a horror  gathered  from  the 
fierce  and  relentless  aspect  he  read  in  the  visages 
of  those  around  him, — and  he  withdrew  a pace  or 
so  towards  his  bed,  saying,  in  a touching  voice  : — 
Ah,  do  not  leave  me,  good  Colonel  Bernikoff, 

or  at  least  give  me  a sword — a sword ” 

Fool — child — dolt ! thou  with  a sword,  and  for 
what  purpose  ? ” thundered  Bernikoff,  as  he  sought 
to  lash  himself  into  the  requisite  pitch  of  fury ; 
“ for  what  purpose,  I say  ? ” 

That  I may  defend  myself.” 

’Tis  needless,”  said  Tschekin,  with  a cold  smile; 
“ we  shall  take  every  care  of  you.” 

Oh,  Carl  Ivanovitch  Balgonie,  my  friend,  my 
good  friend ! you  I can  trust — you,  I can  command 
— come  hither,  and  remain  by  my  side,”  said  the 


THE  JSIHHT  OF  THE  loTH  OF  SEPTEMBER.  197 

Prince,  in  an  imploring  accent,  as  a solemn  fore- 
boding came  upon  him  when  he  saw  the  sabres 
stealthily  drawn  from  their  scabbards  on  every  side, 
and  even  the  terrible  Nicholas  Paulovitch  drawing 
near,  dagger  in  hand,  with  his  long  lock  of  hair,  his 
scrowling  front,  and  a cruel  expression,  the  very 
lust  of  blood,  in  his  deep  set  stony  e}^es.  Carl, 
Carl,”  cried  Ivan ; your  hand  ! ” 

Captain  Balgonie — he  here  ! ” roared  Bernikoff, 
with  one  of  his  terrible  maledictions. 

“ Oh  Excellency  ! ” implored  Balgonie,  scarcely 
knowing  what  he  should  ask  or  urge. 

“ Begone,  sir,  to  the  barrier  gate,  and  keep  the 
guard  there  to  their  duty — begone,  sir,  1 command 
you,  on  your  allegiance  to  the  Empress ! ” 

To  refuse  or  linger  were  alike  impossible,  though 
a wild  cry  of  entreaty  escaped  the  lips  of  the  young 
Prince,  who  sprang  forward,  but  was  thrust  rough- 
ly back  tow^ards  his  couch  by  many  hands  and  many 
levelled  weapons. 

The  sword  of  Damocles,  which  had  hung  over 
his  unhappy  head  so  long,  was  about  to  descend  at 
last  I 

Balgonie,  his  heart  swollen  almost  to  bursting 
with  shame,  rage,  and  grief,  rushed  down  the  stair 
of  the  keep  ; but  at  the  foot,  and  just  as  he  passed 
where  the  old  Chaplain  Chrysostom  was  saying  de- 
voutly on  his  knees  the  prayers  for  the  dying ^ he 
heard  a shrill  and  protracted  cry  of  agony  ring 


198 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


through  the  vaulted  tower — a cry  that  made  his 
blood  run  cold ! 

Humanity,  generosity,  and  all  his  own  good  im- 
pulses would  have  drawn  him  back  to  the  side,  and, 
if  possible,  to  the  aid,  of  Ivan  ; but  the  force  of  dis- 
cipline, and  a knowledge  of  his  own  utter  power- 
lessness, made  liim  pause  : for  he  was  but  one  man 
— a young  officer — a foreigner,  too,  opposed  to  a 
whole  garrison  of  ferocious  and  unscrupulous  sol- 
diers. 

When,  from  the  inner  barrier  gate,  he  looked  up 
to  the  window  of  Ivan’s  room,  he  saw  that  the 
lights  had  been  extinguished  and  all  was  darkness 
now. 


CHAPTEE  XX. 

MORNING  OF  THE  16tH  SEPTEMBER. 

HEN  Bernikoff  appeared  with  his  group  of 
VW4  officers,  Charlie  Balgonie  perceived  that 
there  were  spots  of  blood  upon  his  long,  white 
leather  gauntlets,  that  his  sabre  blade  was  broken 
off  within  six  inches  of  the  hilt,  and  that  a terrible 
expression  of  ferocity  clouded  his  features  and  those 
of  all  around  him,  the  glare  of  the  uplifted  torches 
now  paling  as  the  light  of  day  stole  in,  adding  to 
the  sinister  significance  of  their  faces. 

At  that  moment  the  drummer  of  the  summoners 
beat  a chamade  for  the  third  time,  and  Bernikoff, 
advancing  to  the  klinket,  or  wicket,  in  the  palisades 
of  the  second  inner  gate,  opened  it,  and,  with  a great 
sternness  of  manner,  demanded  what  they  required. 

The  release  of  His  Imperial  Majesty  Ivan  lY.,” 
replied  Basil  Mierowitz,in  a firm  voice,  while  courte- 
ously saluting  Bernikoff,  in  recognition  of  his  supe- 
rior rank. 

“ If  I refuse ” 

^^You  do  so  at  your  own  peril,’’ replied  Basil, 
as  sternly  and  as  proudly  as  if,  instead  of  a few 
discontented  deserters  and  enthusiasts,  the  whole 
armies  of  Russia  were  at  his  back. 


199 


200 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


“ You  cannot  be  mad  enough,  Basil  Mierowitz,  to 
think  of  assaulting  us  ? ” 

‘‘  That  may  or  not  be,  Excellency,  according  to 
circumstances,”  was  the  reply. 

What  troops  are  these  under  your  orders  ? ” 

A guard  of  honour  for  the  Emperor,  if  you 
peacefully  comply — the  first  portion  of  an  investing 
force,  if  you  refuse,”  replied  Mierowitz ; but  a sin- 
ister gleam  of  triumph  flashed  in  the  malicious  eyes 
of  Bernikoff,  who  gathered  more  of  his  real  weak- 
ness from  this  evasive  reply,  than  the  rash  young 
noble  intended. 

Listen,  Colonel  Bernikoff,”  he  continued,  while 
drawing  from  his  breast  a long  paper  of  official  as- 
pect, to  which  several  green  and  scarlet  seals  were 
attached : Her  Majesty  Catharine  II. — for  a time 

of  all  the  Bussias — having  come  to  the  conclusion 
of  resigning  the  imperial  crown  (convinced  at  last 
that  she  has  no  claim  thereto),  and  of  replacing  it 
on  the  head  of  the  Emperor  Ivan  (son  of  Anthony 
Ulric,  Duke  of  Wolfenbuttel),  whom  she  now  feels 
herself  compelled  to  acknowledge  as  her  lawful 
sovereign,  though  basely,  deposed  in  infancy  by  her 
predecessors,  the  Empress  Elizabeth,  and  the  Em- 
peror Peter  III. ; therefore  she  hereby  commands 
you.  Colonel  Bernikoff,  Governor  of  her  Castle  of 
Schlusselburg,  to  set  the  Prince  at  liberty,  with  all 
speed  and  honour.” 

For  a document  and  summons  of  this  artful  and 


MORNING  OF  THE  16tH  OF  SEPTEMBER.  201 


remarkable  nature,  Bernikoff  was  altogether  unpre- 
pared. For  a moment  he  grew  deadly  pale,  but 
for  a moment  only,  and  glanced  at  the  startled  faces 
of  those  around  him.  Had  he  been  too  precipitate 
in  bloodshed  ? 

Where  is  Her  Majesty,  just  now  ? ” he  asked. 

In  the  palace  of  the  Czars,  at  Novgorod.” 

‘‘  Was  Novgorod  so  empty  of  all  the  great  nobles 
and  officers  of  Russia,  that  a document  of  such  a 
nature  was  entrusted  to  a mere  Lieutenant  of  In- 
fantry— a deserter  from  Livonia  ? ” said  Bernikoff, 
with  sudden  rage.  ’Tis  an  imposture — a forgery- 
there  is  but  one  God  in  Heaven — one  monarch  on 
earth,  the  Empress  Catharine ; and  you,  Mierowitz, 
and  ^11  who  league  with  you,  are  but  base  dogs  and 
traitors ! ” 

Forward!”  cried  Basil,  brandishing  his  sabre; 
storm  the  gate — baj^onet  all  who  oppose  us  I ” 

Long  live  Ivan  Antonovitch — long  live  the  Em- 
peror!” exclaimed  his  soldiers,  rushing  forward. 
But  the  klinket  in  the  palisades  was  at  once  closed, 
and  secured  against  them  by  an  enormous  transverse 
beam  of  wood ; and  though  a confused  volley  of  mus- 
ketry was  exchanged  between  tliem  and  the  main 
guard,  no  one  was  struck,  save  Bernikoff,  who  stag- 
gered back  into  the  arms  of  Ylasfief,  having  been 
bayoneted  in  the  breast  by  the  deserter  Jagouski, 
who  drove  his  weapon  between  the  palisades,  nearly 
finishing  what  Basil  had  begun  by  the  blow  of  a 


202 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


musket,  but  which  crushed  the  Colonel’s  hat  and 
nearly  fractured  his  skull. 

“ Ah ! dogs  and  Asiatics,  you  have  struck  me  ! ” 
shouted  Bernikoff,  whose  voice  was  hoarse  with  rage 
and  pain.  ^^Dost  know  the  penalty  of  wounding 
an  officer — of  striking  a soldier  who  wears  a deco- 
ration ? ” 

Accursed  Tartar,  I neither  know  nor  care.  I 
revenge  my  brother’s  death  at  Zorndorf,  my  own 
wrongs,  and  the  murder  of  Peter  III. ! ” replied  the 
exulting  Cossack,  with  a bitter  laugh. 

May  my  right  hand  wither  and  my  tongue 
cleave  to  the  roof  of  my  mouth,  wffien  most  I need 
them  both,  if  I have  not  a terrible  vengeance  for 
all  this  work ! ” cried  Bernikoff.  Ylasfief , Tsche- 

kin,  show  them  their  Prince  ! ” 

While  the  undaunted  Basil  and  his  friend  TJsa- 
koff,  with  their  soldiers,  proceeded  to  wheel  round 
a cannon  of  the  outworks,  a 32-pounder,  for  the 
purpose  of  blowing  open  the  klinket  of  the  inner 
barrier ; and  while  Balgonie,  a silent  but  excited 
and  sick-hearted  spectator  of  the  whole  affair, 
lingered  close  by,  heedless  whether  the  round-shot 
and  grape,  with  which  they  were  charging  the  gun, 
came  this  way,  or  not, — a window  in  the  first  story 
of  the  keep  was  dashed  open,  and  while  every  torch 
and  every  eye  were  uplifted  to  the  place,  a terrible 
spectacle,  which  hushed  all  into  momentary  silence, 
w^as  exhibited. 


:MORNmG  OF  THE  10TH  OF  SEPTEMBER.  203 

It  was  the  dead  body  of  the  young  and  handsome 
Ivan,  suspended  by  the  neck,  at  the  end  of  a rope, 
stripped  even  of  his  night-dress,  cold  and  white  as 
the  marble  of  Paros,  and  gashed  with  ten  gaping 
wounds ; for,  as  we  are  told  in  tlie  newspapers  of 
the  period,  the  unfortunate  prince  had  struggled 
some  time  for  his  life,  and  even  broke  the  Gover- 
nor’s sword  in  the  conflict ; but  assistance  was 
called  for,  and  another  bloody  assassin  (Ylasflef)  ap- 
peared, who  flnished  the  horrid  work.” 

An  exclamation  of  dismay  and  grief  escaped 
Balgonie,  on  beholding  this  appalling  spectacle; 
the  weird  and  ghastly  horror  of  which  was  enhanced 
by  the  uncertain  light  in  which  it  was  exhibited, 
and  which  imparted  a wavering  and  almost  life-like 
action  to  the  corpse,  as  with  its  long  hair  floating, 
head  and  arms  pendent,  it  swayed  to  and  fro  in  the 
morning  wind  against  the  castle  wall. 

“Hospodi  pomilui  ! TIosjpodi  jpomilui  ! cried 
Basil  Mierowitz,  covering  his  face  with  his  hands? 
j and  permitting  the  musket  with  which  he  had  armed 
himself  to  fall  to  the  ground  with  a clash,  which, 
together  with  his  most  mournful  exclamation,  alone 
broke  the  silence. 

^Behold,’  said  Bernikoff,  in  cruel  triumph,  while 
blasphemously  using  the  words  of  Ezekiel — ^behold, 
I take  away  from  thee  the  desire  of  thine  eyes  with  a 
stroke !’  Glory  to  God  and  to  the  Empress  ! This 


*Lord  have  mercy  upon  us ! 


204 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


is  your  Emperor — now  let  him  head  your  troops. 
Doubtless  he  will  make  a fine  figure  on  the  Im- 
perial throne.’"' 

Oh ! Bernikoff,”  exclaimed  Basil,  you  are  like 
Judas,  as  we  may  see  him  at  the  Kazan  church — 
one  hand  on  the  mouth  denoting  treachery,  and  the 
other  on  a bag  of  money.” 

Thou  liest,  Lieutenant ! my  fingers  know  more 
of  the  grip  of  steel  than  of  gold,”  said  the  other 
furiously,  as  he  hurled  the  hilt  of  his  broken  sabre 
at  the  speaker. 

So — so — this  has  been  your  work  and  decision  ? ” 

Yes — how  do  you  like  it  ? ” was  the  mocking 
reply. 

Thou  art  a cruel  judge ; but  remember  the  law 

of  Peter  the  Great ” 

“ Which  makes  the  judge  answerable  for  his  de- 
cision ? ” 

“ Yes.” 

Then  shall  I content  me,  traitor,  and  be  answer- 
able  for  my  decision  as  well  as  for  its  execution.  I 
have  done  my  duty  to  the  Czarina.” 

You  have  done  a deed  for  which  hell  must  blush 
and  angels  weep,”  was  the  forcible  reply  of  Miero- 
witz,  who  seemed  so  overcome  by  grief  and  horror, 
as  to  lose  all  self-possession ; for  he  now  ordered  his 
men  to  disperse  to  the  woods — to  seek  safety  in 
flight ; and  then  calmly  taking  off  his  sword-belt 
^nd  sash,  be  threw  them  on  the  ground  saying : — 


MORKINO  OF  THE  16tH  OF  SEPTEMBER.  206 

Since  my  Imperial  master  is  dead,  further  re- 
sistance would  be  vain  in  me.” 

He  was  almost  immediately  afterwards  struck  to 
the  earth,  and  made  prisoner  by  Lieutenant  Tschekin, 
who,  with  a party  of  dismounted  Cossacks,  had  stolen 
through  the  casemates  and  galleries  to  a postern  open- 
ing on  the  rear  of  the  drawbridge,  and  these,  after 
firing  a confused  volley  with  their  pistols  and  mus- 
ketoons,  fell  with  their  sharp  crooked  sabres  upon 
the  now  thoroughly  disheartened  adherents  of  Mi- 
erowitz.  Lieutenant  LTsakoff  and  Jagouski  alone 
made  any  vigorous  resistance,  resolving  not  to  be 
taken  alive. 

Fighting  desperately,  almost  back  to  back,  the 
former  armed  with  the  sabre  of  Mazeppa,  and  the 
latter  with  a musket,  and  both  bleeding  from  many 
wounds,  they  were  driven  through  the  outer  barrier 
towards  the  town.  On  the  pathway  Jagouski  stum- 
bled over  a comrade,  and  was  taken ; but  Apollo 
Usakoff,  with  a shout  in  which  triumph  and  despair 
were  mingled,  leaped  into  the  Neva,  the  waters  of 
which  swept  him  away,  and  he  was  seen  no  more  by 
his  pursuers. 

When  Tschekin’s  Cossacks  joined  in  the  mele^e 
with  the  fugitives,  Balgonie  sprang  through  the 
klinket,  sword  in  hand,  resolved  to  succour  his  friend 
at  all  hazards  ; and  fortunately  arrived  just  in  time 
to  save  him  (when  struck  down  and  trod  under  foot) 
from  the  bulky  giant  Nicholas  Paulovitch,  who,  with 


206 


THE  SECRET  EISPATOH. 


a clubbed  musket,  was  about  to  give  him  a blow 
that  must  inevitably  have  proved  fatal. 

Paulo vitch  he  ran  through  the  heart — or  at  least 
the  place  where  his  heart  might  be  supposed  to  have 
been — and  spurning  him  off  the  blade  with  his  foot, 
hurled  the  snorting  ruffian  to  the  ground,  and  raised 
his  friend,  with  the  assistance  of  a soldier  and  Lieu- 
tenant Tschekin. 

Made  prisoner,  and  by  you  too,  Carl ! ” said 
Basil,  reproachfully  and  in  a low  voice,  for  he  was 
faint  with  wounds  and  bruises. 

“ By  me,  but  to  save  you.’’ 

Seek  rather  to  save  Natalie,  if  you  can,”  he 
whispered ; she  is,  she  is — ” 

Where,  where  ? ” said  Balgonie,  impetuously 
and  imploringly. 

But  there  was  no  reply.  Basil  had  fainted,  and 
was  borne  into  the  Castle  of  Schlusselburg,  a pris- 
oner of  State. 

Balgonie  never  saw  the  face  of  his  friend  again ! 

So  ended  for  a time,  a scheme,  the  importance  of 
which  was  only  equalled  by  its  bold  recklessness — 
the  scheme  of  two  subaltern  officers  to  revolutionize 
the  vast  empire  of  Russia,  and  to  subvert  the  firm 
dominion  of  Catharine  II.,  one  of  the  most  power- 
ful and  popular,  though  licentious,  monarchs  that 
ever  sat  on  the  barbarous  throne  of  the  Czars ; and 
such  was  the  terrible  sequel  to  the  Secret  Dispatch 
of  Balgonie. 


Morning  of  the  16th  of  September.  207 

Day  had  completely  broken  when  he  was  sum- 
moned by  Bernikoff.  Shuddering  as  he  passed 
through  the  court  of  the  Castle  and  under  the  very 
window  where  the  corpse  was  yet  swaying  mourn- 
fully to  and  fro  in  the  morning  breeze  that  swept 
from  the  broad  waters  of  the  vast  lake,  whose  rip- 
ples were  shining  like  gold  in  the  first  beams  of  the 
autumnal  sun,  Charlie  sought  the  presence  of  this 
detestable  personage,  the  thunder  of  whose  wrath 
he  feared  was  about  to  descend  upon  himself. 

He  found  the  Colonel  in  his  shirt  sleeves,  and 
almost  covered  with  blood,  which  was  fiowing  from 
a wound  in  his  breast  and  another  on  the  head,  from 
whence  it  was  trickling  to  the  ends  of  his  long  and 
snaky  grey  mustacheos.  To  both  of  these  cuts  the 
barber  was  about  to  apply  dressings,  while  the  pa- 
tient solaced  himself  by  scheming  out  some  dread- 
ful punishment  for  Jagouski,  who,  with  several 
others,  had  fallen  into  his  gentle  hands,  and  by  ut- 
tering deep  oaths,  and  imbibing  deep  draughts  from  a 
great  wooden  bowl  of  quass,  dashed  with  fiery  vodka. 

Balgonie,  whose  thoughts  ran  chiefly  upon  how  to 
discover  and  succour  hJatalie,  was  roused  to  attention 
by  Bernikoff  saying  grimly: — 

Carl  Ivanovitch  Balgonie,  for  aiding  in  the  cap- 
ture of  the  rebel  Mierowitz,  I thank  you ; suspicions 
I had,  but  they  are  gone.  You  are  now,  perhaps, 
to  rejoin  the  Regiment  of  Smolensko,  and  shall 
bear  a dispatch  from  me  to  Lieutenant-General 


208 


teE  SECRET  iDiSPATca. 


Weymarn  and  Lieutenant-Colonel  Casclikin  (who 
are  both  in  St.  Petersburg),  relating  the  affair  of  the 
last  twelve  hours.  Ylastief  shall  prepare  it,  and  I 
shall  sign  it.  Place  a feather  in  the  seal,  lest  the 
Captain  lingers  as  he  did  at  Louga  ! Here,  Carl 
Ivanovitcli,  taste  the  quass ; His  the  trisna  of  Ivan 
the  Unknown  person  ! ’’ 

There  was  something  so  horrible  in  this  levity 
and  impiety  to  the  Cossacks,  that  even  they  ex- 
changed uneasy  glances ; for  the  trisna  at  funeral 
feasts  is  a mixture  of  rum,  beer,  and  wine,  and  is  an 
ancient  Sclavonian  beverage.  When  it  is  handed 
round,  all  stand  up  uncovered,  the  clergy  recite  a 
solemn  prayer,  and  at  its  close  the  trisna  is  drunk 
to  the  health  of  the  departed  Christian  soul ; so 
Balgonie  shuddered,  as  he  thought  of  the  gashed 
and  dishonored  corpse  that  swung  by  the  neck  with- 
out the  castle  wall. 

This  emotion  did  not  escape  the  fierce  eyes  of 
Bernikoff,  though  his  wounds  were  most  severe,  and 
his  mind  was  wandering. 

Nay,  look  not  at  me  thus,  Scot,”  said  the 
genuine  old  Bussian  fatalist ; ‘‘  God  willed  it  that 
Prince  Ivan  should  be  put  in  my  charge  ; and  the 
devil,  together  with  my  duty  to  the  Empress,  in- 
spired me  to  destroy  him.  What  is  done,  is  done, 
and  is  the  will  of  God  ; and  you  know,  or  ought  to 
know,  our  Muscovite  proverb — the  Czar  is  high,  and 
God  is  everywhere  ! ” 


MORNING  OF  THE  16TH  OF  SEPTEMBER.  209 


“ Three  times  has  this  old  reprobate  mentioned 
that  terrible  Name,  and  each  time  bowing  his  sinful 
head!”  thought  Charlie,  with  disgust  and  wonder. 

Hah  ! ” resumed  Bernikoff,  pursuing  his  own 
thoughts,  and  clenching  his  teeth  in  rage  and  pain, 
‘^did  that  suckling  of  a Lieutenant  think  to  deceive 
me — I,  who  have  been  forty  years  in  the  Bussian 
army,  and  have  to  deal  with  the  most  cunning 
scoundrels  between  the  Black  Sea  and  the  Baltic  I 
Jagouski,  too.  I’ll  fill  his  mouth  with  gunpoM'der, 
put  a fuse  between  his  teeth,  and  blow  his  head  off. 
By  St.  Sergius,  I will  I But,  holy  Saint,  alleviate 
these  pangs,  by  ever  so  little,  and  this  night  six 
pounds  of  the  finest  wax  shall  burn  before  thee.” 
He  gnashed  his  teeth  with  pain,  and  added,  Be 
ready  to  ride  in  an  hour.  Captain ; till  then,  leave 
me.” 


CHAPTEK  XXI. 


UNDERGROUND. 

HE  Empress’s  court  of  Secret  Chancery  soon 
^2/  decided  on  the  fate  of  Basil  Mierowitz  ; the 
Count,  his  father,  and  his  cousin  Mariolizza,  who 
had  been  passive,  though  suspected  in  the  matter, 
had  their  cases  taken  into  future  consideration,  so 
they  were  kept  close  prisoners  while  their  proper- 
ties and  possessions  were  given  up  to  pillage  and 
military  execution.  Basil  was  condemned  to  be 
broken  alive  upon  the  wheel;  but  the  Empress, 
who  had  a particular  tenderness  for  handsome  men, 
mitigated  his  punishment  to  the  less  severe  one 
of  being  beheaded.” 

A brief  paragraph  in  the  London  Gazette  of  the 
23rd  October  records  this  brave  fellow’s  death, 
just  fourteen  days  after  his  rash  affair  at  Schlussel- 
burg : 

M.  Mierowitz,  in  pursuance  of  his  sentence,  was 
publicly  beheaded  on  Wednesday  last ; he  behaved 
at  his  execution,  as  he  had  done  throughout  the 
whole  transaction,  with  the  greatest  resignation. 
Six  of  the  soldiers  and  under-officers  who  were  en- 
gaged with  him  ran  the  gantelope  the  same  day ; 

^10 


UNDERGROUND 


211 


they  were  so  severely  whipped  that  it  is  said  three 
of  them  are  since  dead.  Many  more  are  to  be  pun- 
ished. One,  Usakoff,  a Lieutenant  in  the  Regi- 
ment of  Welikolutz  {sic)  who  was  privy  to  the  de- 
sign, was  accidentally  drowned.’’ 

Notwithstanding  his  rank  and  years,  old  Count 
Mierowitz  was  retained  in  a dungeon  among  a 
number  of  miserable  Russian  rogues  and  Polish 
prisoners,  clad  in  filthy  sheepskin  shoubahs,  many 
of  them  being  afflicted  with  the  terrible  disease 
known  as  ^lica  jpolonica^  or  matted  hair,  which 
hung  over  their  necks  in  clotted  lumps,  every  tube 
being  swollen  and  dilated  with  globules  of  blood. 

The  lower  vaults  of  Schlusselburg  were  those 
built  by  Ivan  the  Terrible,  for  the  reception  of  a 
few  of  the  revolters  of  Novgorod,  after  he  had  put 
twenty-five  thousand  of  her  citizens  to  the  sword. 
They  were  such  prisons  as — ^let  us  hope — are  no 
longer  in  use,  even  in  Russia ; although  the  London 
press  has  asserted  that,  until  lately,  exactly  such 
oubliettes  or  dungeons  were  in  active  operation,  and 
never  without  tenants,  under  the  royal  rule  of  the 
deposed  Francis  II.,  and  prior  to  the  remodelling 
of  Italy  by  Yictor  Emmanuel. 

They  were  like  the  frightful  cells  of  the  Bastile, 
which  Victor  Hugo  has  described  in  Notre  Dame 
those  of  the  Inquisition  at  Goa  or  Madrid,  or  of 
old  castles  of  the  middle  ages  ; but  apart  from  the 
happily  departed  horrors  of  such  places,  even  Eng- 


212 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


lish  jails  have  been  little  better  ithan  living  graves 
within  the  memory  of  many  now  alive ; for  one  of 
the  greatest  glories  of  modern  civilization,  in  all 
countries,  have  been  the  amelioration  of  prisons 
and  their  government,  and  the  substitution  of  mercy 
and  protection  in  their  general,  economy  for  that 
irresponsible  despotism  and  wanton  cruelty  which 
have  formed  such  ample  materials  for  the  romancer 
and  novelist  to  excite  compassion  and  even  dismay. 

Yet  it  is  exactly  such  a place — a prison  of  the 
middle  ages — a rival  to  that  Chillon  to  which 
Byron’s  genius  has  given  a greater  name  than  ever 
its  terrors  won  it — we  are  now  about  to  describe : 
One  of  the  lower  vaults  of  Schlusselburg,  a den,  the 
floor  of  which  was  below  the  rocks  whereon  the 
seals  of  Ladoga  basked  in  the  sunshine,  and  which 
was  consequently  liable  to  be  flooded  during  those 
inundations  that,  at  certain  seasons,  overflow  all  the 
country  for  a great  way  north,  so  that  no  crops 
will  grow  save  upon  the  eminences. 

Vaulted  with  stone,  it  was  nearly  square,  and 
measured  twelve  feet  each  way,  with  a floor  that 
sloped  down  at  one  end,  having  been  unevenly 
hewn  out  when  the  rock  was  pierced ; and  from  a 
portion  of  this  rock  sprang  the  solid  arch  of  granite 
blocks  which  formed  the  roof.  A narrow  slit,  six 
inches  broad  by  twelve  high,  and  having  even  in 
that  small  space  a thick  iron  bar,  admitted  to  the 
interior  a feeble  ray  of  light.  This  slit  was  paj’tly 


tJNDERtoOUNDi 


213 


built  of  stone,  but  its  sill  was  the  living  rock  of 
Schliisselbiu’g.  It  opened  towards  the  lake,  but 
gave  no  prospect  save  the  clouds,  for  it  was  high 
up  in  the  wall ; yet  the  melancholy  cries  of  the 
waterfowl  and  of  the  seabirds,  which  often  came 
up  the  Neva  from  the  Baltic,  were  heard  through 
it  at  times. 

The  prisoner,  when  seated  on  the  stone  bench 
which  formed  a bed  or  seat  alternately,  could  only 
see  the  changing  hues  of  the  sky.  and  patches  of 
cloud,  and  know  by  the  darkness  which  gradually 
obscured  this  mere  shot-hole  that  day  was  passing 
away,  and  that  another  night,  chill,  dark,  dreary, 
and  hopeless,  was  at  hand. 

As  the  floor  sloped  down  some  twelve  inches  or 
more,  the  lower  end  was  always  full  of  water,  into 
which  the  slime  that  gathered  on  the  vault  of  the 
arch  fell  at  intervals  with  a regular  splash  that,  to 
the  silent  and  apparently  forgotten  prisoner,  be- 
came maddening  in  its  monotony  of  sound,  by  day 
and  night,  by  morning  and  evening,  by  dawn  and 
sunset.  Then,  as  the  tides  rose  and  fell,  or  as  the 
waters  of  the  vast  inland  lake  of  Ladoga  are  af- 
fected by  the  Baltic  stopping  the  downward  flow 
of  the  Neva,  or  by  rains  flooding  the  many  tribu- 
taries that  join  them,  so  did  this  dark  pool  in  the 
dungeon  rise  and  fall,  when  the  current  oozed 
through  secret  and  unknown  channels  or  crannies 
in  the  granite  rocks. 


214 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


It  was  in  this  vault,  or  one  of  those  adjoining — 
such  a den  as  that  in  which  Dante  placed  his  De- 
mon— that  the  betrayed  wife  of  Count  Orloff,  the 
beautiful  daughter  of  the  Empress  Elizabeth,  was 
drowned,  ten  years  after  the  date  of  this  history, 
when  the  waters  of  the  Neva  rose  ten  feet;  and,  as 
they  subsided,  bore  her  body  to  the  Gulf  of  Fin- 
land. 

No  one  could  live  very  long  in  such  a place — 
low,  damp,  cold,  and  horrible.  And  well  did  Berni- 
koff  know  this,  when,  in  the  blind  transports  of 
rage  and  agony  resulting  from  his  double  wounds, 
he  barbarously  consigned  Natalie  Mierowna  to  such 
a place — ay,  even  Natalie  the  soft  and  delicate,  the 
high-bred  and  tenderly-nurtured  daugher  of  Count 
Mierowitz  ; and  she  had  now  been  in  the  under- 
ground vault  for  three  days  and  nights, — seventy- 
two  hours, — which  to  her  had  resembled  a horrible 
and  protracted  nightmare. 

She  was  ignorant,  as  yet,  of  her  brother’s  execu- 
tion, a week  before.  Betrayed  by  one  of  their  most 
trusted  adherents,  as  the  price  of  his  own  liberty, 
she  and  Katinka  had  been  taken.  Of  the  fate  of 
the  latter  she  knew  nothing ; a mere  Polish  waiting- 
maid,  a pretty  soubrette,  she  had  too  probably  be- 
come the  lawful  prey  of  the  Cossacks,  whom  Nata- 
lie had  last  seen  in  the  forest,  with  terrible  signifi- 
cance rattling  their  dice  on  the  kettle-drum  head. 

For  herself,  the  poor  girl  only  knew  that  she 


UNDERGROUND. 


215 


was  placed  there  to  await  the  pleas  tu’e  of  her  Em- 
press and  the  Grand  Chancellor. 

Hope  w^as  dead,  completely,  in  her  heart ; and 
though  the  desire  to  live  was  strong,  her  former  life 
seemed  all  a dream ; or  something  that  had  happened 
long,  long  ago ! 

Crouching  on  a damp  pallet  that  lay  on  the  couch 
of  stone,  her  hair  dishevelled,  her  dress  more  than 
ever  torn,  discolored,  and  disordered,  her  snowy 
arms  and  hands  stripped  of  every  ornament  and 
ring,  her  tender  feet  well-nigh  shoeless,  her  eyes 
half  dossed  and  surrounded  by  dark  inflamed  circles, 
her  cheeks  sunk  and  haggard, — it  would  be  diflicult 
to  recognise  in  her  the  once  beautiful  and  brilliant 
Natalie,  whose  coquetry  had  excited  the  ready  jeal- 
ousy of  Catharine  in  that  fatal  Mazurka ; the  Nat- 
alie of  the  imperial  salons  at  Moscow,  at  Oranien- 
baum,  or  the  palace  of  Tsarsky  Selo  ; or  the  Natalie 
of  that  princely  old  chateau  near  the  Luuga — the 
proud,  bright-eyed,  and  beautiful  girl  whom  Charlie 
Balgonie  had  loved,  and  worshipped  as  a god- 
^ dess. 

As  she  crouched  in  a species  of  ^stupor  beside  a 
wooden  bowl  of  stale  water  and  a mouldy  loaf  of 
black  bread,  there  seemed  to  be  no  breath  in  her 
tender  nostrils,  no  sound  in  those  little  ears  over 
which  the  black  hair  rolled  in  unheeded  masses — no 
sound  save  the  monotonous  plash  of  the  dropping 
slime.  She  was  pale  as  white  marbel, — cold  as 


216 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


death, — a prey  to  utter  confusion  rather  than  pro- 
found grief.  There  were  times  when  she  felt  and 
thought  and  knew  of  nothing ; but  there  were  others 
when  all  the  past — the  memory  of  her  ruined  house, 
her  shattered  love,  her  slaughtered  friends,  their 
fatal  project,  and  her  lost  position  in  society — 
brought  a cruel  and  keen  pang  to  her  heart,  and 
made  her  writhe  and  start  and  wring  her  hands,  but 
not  weep  ; for  she  had  not  a tear  left;  and  her  hard 
dry  eyeballs  were  the  only  warm  part  of  her  shud- 
dering frame. 

When  she  did  rouse  herself  to  calm  reflection  and 
the  realities  of  her  position,  thought  well-nigh  drove 
her  mad. 

Her  old  father — his  sturdy  figure,  his  venerable 
beard  and  white  eyebrows,  his  silver  hair  queued  by 
a simple  ribbon,  his  quaint  old-fashioned  costume  of 
the  first  Peter’s  time,  rose  vividly  before  her ; and 
with  a gush  of  memory  came  all  his  peculiarities  of 
disposition,  his  warmth  of  heart  and  temper,  his 
kindness  and  irritability,  his  pride  of  race  and  fam- 
ily. Where  were  all  these  now  ? 

Her  lover,  too — his  voice,  and  eyes,  and  gentle 
manner  came  next,  to  add  to  her  pangs— for  him,  too, 
must  she  relinquish  for  ever ; no  shelter  was  there 
now  for  her  save  the  cold  grave,  which  was  perhaps 
to  receive  them  all ! Basil,  Usakoif,  and  Mariolizza 
— alas  ! terrible  though  her  own  sufferings,  she  little 
knew  those  to  which  the  fairer  beauty  and  more 


tJKDERGROtTND. 


217 


unwary  tongue  of  Mariolizza  had  subjected  that  un- 
happy  girl. 

The  excellent  taste,  the  polished  education,  and 
high  accomplishments  of  Natalie,  which  were  so  far 
superior  to  those  of  most  ladies  of  her  own  rank  and 
country  then,  gave  a greater  poignancy  to  the  hor- 
rors of  reality  and  imagination ; yet  imagination 
could  supply  no  horror  but  what  was  real,  and  stern- 
ly  so. 

Their  princely  old  dwelling  amid  the  pine  forests 
— never  more  would  she  see  its  dome  of  polished 
copper  shining  in  the  sun,  or  the  wooded  domain 
that  stretched  for  uncounted  versts  around  it ; or  her 
father’s  patrimonial  village,  nestling  by  the  Louga, 
which  bore  his  rafts  of  timber  to  the  sea,  and  by 
night  reflected  the  glare  of  those  furnaces  which 
were  another  source  of  vast  wealth,  and  the  means 
of  procuring  a thousand  luxuries. 

Better  would  it  ha^e  been,  had  she  and  they  and 
all  succumbed  to  Catharine’s  iron  rule,  than  sought 
the  freedom  of  Ivan  IV.;  but  it  was  too  late — too 
late,  now  ! 

W as  it  all  a dream  from  which  she  must  awaken  ? 
Strange  it  was,  that  as  weariness,  sleep,  or  a stupor 
stole  over  her,  scraps  of  songs,  frivolous  ones  es- 
pecially, airs  from  operas,  and  so  forth,  occurred  to 
lier  drowsy  ear,  as  if  her  brain  was  turning  ; and  to 
these  the  Altering  plash  and  the  sound  of  the  rising 
waves  and  wind  without  seemed  to  mark  a cadence. 


218 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


Suddenly  a scream  escaped  her ; she  was  in  total 
darkness.  Amid  her  sleep  or  stupor,  a fourth  night 
had  come  on — a night  of  storm,  too,  for  she  heard 
the  roar  of  the  autumn  rain,  as  it  descended  like  a 
vast  sheet  upon  the  lake  without. 

Cold  and  slimy  things  had  often  crossed  her  slen- 
der ankles,  making  her  shriek  and  shudder;  but 
now,  she  became  sensible  that  her  feet  were  com- 
pletely immersed  in  water  ; that  the  wind  was  bel- 
lowing without  and  rolling  the  waves  against  the 
rocks  ; and  that  the  current  of  the  lake  was  flooding 
the  floor  of  her  vault,  and  rising  fast  within  it. 

It  rose  with  appalling  rapidity  : and  now  the  ter- 
ror of  a dreadful  death  made  Natalie  utter  a succes- 
sion of  piercing  shrieks,  mingled  with  prayers  to 
heaven.  But  her  cries  were  unheard  ; for  the  same 
cold,  icy  tide  that  flooded  her  cell,  tilled  all  the  cor- 
ridors by  which  it  and  others  on  the  same  floor  were 
approached. 

Rapidly  it  rose,  this  dark,  silent,  and  terrible  tide 
— rapidly  and  without  a sound. 

She  sprang  upon  her  stone  couch,  but  already  the 
pallet  was  floated  away.  Up  yet  rose  the  invad- 
ing water,  and  it  was  soon  nearly  to  her  waist ; and 
gasping  and  shuddering  cries  were  mingled  with  her 
prayers.  A little  more,  and  the  narrow  slit  through 
which  she  could  hear  the  bellowing  wind  and  see 
the  black  clouds  careering  past  one  red  and  flery 
northern  star — the  last  gleam  of  life  and  of  the 


tNDERGROtJJfD. 


219 


outer  world — w'ould  vanish  from  her  eyes,  as  she 
perished  in  that  miserable  tomb  ; even  as  the  Prin- 
cess Orloff  and  many  others  have  done,  helpless  and 
unheeded  in  their  djdng  agony — drowned  miserably, 
like  the  prison  rats  that  swam  around  them. 

In  the  last  energies  of  her  despair,  she  made  her 
way  to  the  enormously  thick  door  which  closed  this 
trap  of  stone,  and,  applying  her  lips  to  the  joints? 
shrieked  loudly  again  and  again  for  succor,  and  beat 
wildly  and  fruitlessly  with  her  tender  hands  upon  its 
massive  planks  and  iron  bolts. 

Her  bram  seemed  bursting,  for  she  was  suffocat- 
ing as  the  air  lessened.  She  thought  she  saw  a red 
light  shining  through  the  crannies  of  the  doorway ; 
but  whether  this  were  fancy  or  reality,  it  Avas  im- 
possible to  say — as  a faintness  came  over  her,  and 
she  sank  down  choking  and  drowning  in  the  flood 
that  rose  within  the  walls  and  agains  the  door  of 
the  prison. 


CHAPTEE  XXIL 


OVER  THEIR  WINE. 

T[?EAVY  and  sad  was  the  heart  of  Charlie  Bal* 
•*•/  gonie  when,  on  the  evening  of  the  16th  Sep- 
tember, that  which  was  subsequent  to  the  episode  at 
Schlusselburg,  he  saw  the  domes  and  towers  of  St. 
Petersburg  glittering  in  gold  and  bronze,  in  green 
and  fiery  or  fantastic  colours,  amid  the  rich  glow  of 
a ruddy  sunset ; and  where  rising  from  the  haze 
of  the  vast  city,  the  polished  cupola  of  St.  Isaac’s 
Cathedral,  and  the  slender  spire  of  the  Admiralty, 
like  a needle  of  fiame,  seemed  to  float  in  mid  air. 

As  he  entered  the  first  guarded  barrier,  he  met  a 
party  of  Lancers  riding  at  a trot,  their  tall  fur  caps 
having  scarlet  kalpecs  and  large  plumes,  their 
lances,  each  with  a long  bannerole  of  the  same  color 
waving  in  the  wind.  They  escorted  a covered 
kabitka,  or  wagon,  and  were  led  by  the  Count  de 
Balmain,  a Scottish  officer,  who,  in  after  years, 
stormed  Kaffa,  in  the  Crimea. 

Whither  go  you.  Count  he  asked. 

For  Schlusselburg — the  place  of  sorrow.” 

With  a prisoner,  of  course  ?” 

Yes,  I regret  to  say,  with  the  niece  of  Count 
220 


OYER  THEIR  WINE. 


221 


Mierowitz,  with  Mademoiselle  Mariolizza.  She  is 
to  be  confined  under  a warrant  from  the  Grand 
Chancellor — poor  girl !” 

Sadder  and  heavier  grew  the  honest  heart  of 
Balgonie,  as  the  escort  and  its  hearse-like  carriage 
passed  on ; and,  as  he  looked  after  it,  the  fair  merry 
face,  the  full  and  voluptuous  figure,  the  gay  manner 
and  remarkable  d' esprit  of  the  betrothed  of 

poor  Basil,  as  he  had  last  seen  her  at  Louga,  came 
back  vividly  to  memory  now. 

Balgonie  was  at  St.  Petersburg  when  Mierowitz 
was  executed,  and  when  other  horrors  followed. 
Moreover,  he  was  closely  and  repeatedly  interrogated 
by  the  Grand  Chancellor,  the  Privy  Councellor,  the 
Count  Panim,  by  Count  Orloff  (the  present  lover  of 
the  Empress),  and  by  General  Weymarn,  as  to  all  he 
knew  and  had  seen  of  the  conspirators: — so  closely, 
that  nothing  surprised  him  so  much  as  to  find  that 
no  suspicion  was  attached  to  himself.  But  being  a 
soldier  of  fortune,  who  possessed  nothing  in  the 
world  but  his  sword  and  his  epaulettes,  he  was  not 
worth  suspecting  by  the  Imperial  Government. 

Ere  long,  the  name  of  Natalie  came  before  the 
Secret  Chancery,  as  a prisoner  in  Schlusselburg; 
and,  like  the  rest,  she  was  tried  and  condemned  in 
her  absence,  undefended  and  unheard ; and  sent- 
enced, too,  amid  the  solitude  of  her  prison. 

To  Balgonie  the  charm  of  life  seemed  to  have 
passed  away;  and,  during  the  week  or  two  that 


222 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


followed  his  return  to  St.  Petersburg,  dreary,  wea- 
ry, and  unmeaning,  indeed,  seemed  the  routine  of 
his  duties  as  aide-de-camp  at  the  vast  parades,  the 
brilliant  receptions,  the  courts-martial,  and  other 
public  affairs  to  which  he  followed  his  cJief^  Gen- 
eral Weymarn,  at  the  palaces  of  Tsarsky  Selo,  or 
Oranienbaum,  and  elsewhere,  while  ignorant  of  the 
fate  of  Natalie — while  the  very  life  of  her  he  loved 
hung  in  the  balance. 

When  compared  with  their  fate,  how  happy 
seemed  those  lovers,  who,  though  separated  for  a 
period,  could  look  confidently  forward  through  the 
long  succession  of  hours,  of  days  and  nights,  of 
weeks,  and  months,  or  even  years,  and  reckon  with 
certainty  on  the  time  of  reunion  ! With  him  and 
Natalie,  time  stretched  into  a length  that  seemed 
interminable : their  future  had  no  background ; 
their  separation  was  one  without  hope. 

Charlie,  in  his  desperation,  applied  to  the  Mar- 
quis de  Bausset  and  to  Sir.  George  Macartney, 
then  the  Ambassadors  from  France  and  Britain; 
and  both  received  his  verbal  prayers — he  dared  not 
write  on  such  a subject — for  mercy  to  the  Count’s 
family;  but  they  were  unheeded  and  the  Ministers 
replied  only  by  bows,  grimaces,  and  shrugs  of  their 
diplomatic  shoulders.  Their  interference  was  im- 
possible— quite  ; and,  unfortunately,  his  old  patron. 
Admiral  Thomas  Mackenzie,  was  with  the  fieet  in 
the  Black  Sea. 


OYER  THEIR  WINE. 


228 


The  suspicions  excited  against  his  Regiment  and 
the  Glenadiers  of  Valikolutz,  might  procure  the 
banishment  of  both;  he  feared  it  in  the  form  of 
service  in  Siberia,  or  at  the  Crimean  lines  of 
Perecop.  In  either  case,  unless  Weymarn  stood 
his  friend,  how  could  he  hope  to  succour  Natalie ! 

At  every  tea-house,  hotel,  and  cafe,  his  uniform 
of  the  Smolensko  Infantry,  and  the  knowledge  that 
he  was  the  staff  officer  who  had  been  in  Schlussel- 
burg, and  who  brought  the  first  tidings  of  the  late 
affair,  made  him  an  object  of  special  interest ; but 
the  subject  was  alike  a perilous  and  painful  one. 
Walls  have  many  ears  in  Russia;  so  he  was  com- 
pelled to  be  silent,  or  discreet,  even  to  rudeness, 
though  the  following  declaration,  which  was  issued 
by  the  Empress,  might  have  allayed  his  fears  : — 

“ We,  Catharine  the  Second,  by  the  Grace  of 
God,  Empress  and  Sovereign  of  all  the  Russias, 
&c.,  &c.,  make  known  to  our  Regiment  of  Smolen- 
sko Infantry  that,  according  to  the  equity  which  we 
exert  towards  our  faithful  subjects,  we  cannot  re- 
present to  ourselves,  without  profound  grief,  how 
much  that  regiment  must  be  afflicted,  for  having 
among  its  officers  a wretch  in  the  person  of  Miero- 
witz ; nevertheless,  as  the  crime  of  one  man  cannot 
affect  those  who  had  no  part  in  it,  and  that,  besides, 
we  know  the  bravery  with  which  the  regiment  has 
distinguished  itself  upon  all  occasions,  its  attach- 


224 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


ment  to  strict  discipline,  and  its  exactness  in  the 
military  duty  of  our  empire  ; therefore  we  grant  it, 
through  our  imperial  good-will,  the  same  assurances 
of  protection  which  it  has  in  all  times  deserved.  In 
consequence,  we  forbid  all  and  every  one,  to  re- 
proach or  upbraid  the  said  regiment  concerning  the 
treason  of  Mierowitz,  under  pain  of  incurring  our 
indignation,  and  drawing  on  themselves  the  effects 
of  our  just  resentment. 

{Signed)  “ Catharine.” 

Hope  seemed  to  revive  a little  after  the  issue  of 
this  conciliatory  oukaz  ; but  it  was  speedily  dashed, 
when  Balgonie,  on  returning  from  Cronstadt, 
whither  he  had  been  sent  by  General  Weymarn, 
suddenly  met  Captain  Ylasfief  face  to  face,  near  the 
palace  of  the  favorite  Lanskoi. 

This  personage  he  wmild  have  avoided  like  a toad 
or  a leper;  but  from  him  only  might  he  learn  some- 
thing of  her  he  loved  in  Schlusselburg,  that  hateful 
place  to  which  the  Captain  was  returning ; so,  over- 
coming or  rather  concealing,  his  repugnance,  he  ad- 
journed wdth  him  to  a cafe,  and  ordered  wine. 

I dare  say  you  have  heard,”  said  Ylasfief,  with 
a strange  leer  in  his  eyes,  as  he  tossed  his  hat  and 
sabre  on  the  sofa  and  deposited  his  jack-booted 
lim-;s  on  another,  how  the  estates  of  the  Count 
and  those  of  Usakoff  have  been  sold  or  gifted 
away;  pillaged  and  ravaged  by  Lanskoi  with  a 


OVER  THEIR  WINE* 


226 


party  of  Tchernemoski  Cossacks ; and  that  the 
plunder  has  been  stored  up  in  Schlusselburg  ? ” 

“ Something  of  all  this  I have  heard,”  replied 
Balgonie,  when  the  waiter  had  filled  their  glasses 
and  withdrawn,  and — and — but  you  have  Ihere 

two  ladies  of  the  Count’s  family  ? ” 

True — Mademoiselle  Mariolizza,  who  was  en- 
gaged to  Mierowitz,  and  the  Count’s  draughter : one 
beautifully  fair,  the  other  black-haired  like  a Pole. 
Poor  girls ! ” he  continued,  while  leisurely  filling 
the  large  china  bowl  of  a tasselled  pipe,  which  sus- 
piciously resembled  one  Charlie  had  often  seen  the 
old  Count  smoking,  I remember  them  both  in 
happier  and  brighter  times : but  those  who  play 
with  fire  will,  you  know,  be  burned.  The  sentences 
on  all  have  been  found,  recorded,  and,  in  two  in- 
stances, executed  ; and  they  are  truly  terrible  ! ” 
Executed — the  sentence  ! ” replied  Balgonie,  in 
a faint  voice. 

^^Tes;  you  have  been  four  day*s  at  Cronstadt : 
well,  in  those  four  days  many  things  have  been 
done — a light ; thank  you.  The  Count  is  now 
travelling  towards  Tobolsk  under  an  escort  of  Bal- 
main’s Lancers.  There  he  will  have  to  hunt  the 
ermine,  cultivate  asafcetida,  or  dig  in  the  mines, 
with  a collar  at  his  neck,  for  the  remainder  of  his 
days ; but  for  the  ladies  of  his  family,  a more  severe 
punishment  was  reserved  : ah ! he  is  a stern  fellow, 
old  Panim  ! ” 


226 


THE  SECRET  DlSRATCH, 


“ How — what  ? Ylasfief,  you  jest  ? ” 

’Tis  no  jest : we  don’t  jest  on  such  matters  in 
Russia,”  replied  Ylasfief,  who  was  too  thorough  a 
Tou^ — too  used  up,”  in  fact — to  care  for  what  any 
woman  might  suffer  or  undergo ; for  every  human 
emotion  and  sympathy  were  dead  in  this  man  now. 

What  new  horrors  am  I to  hear  ? ” exclaimed 
Balgonie,  with  passionate  vehemence,  as  he  dashed 
his  heavy  Turkish  sabre  on  the  table. 

Ylasfief  smiled  sourly,  and  his  cunning  eyes 
twinkled. 

You  are  a Scot,  like  Balmain,”  said  he  disdain- 
fully ; ^ ^and  as  the  T urks — those  accursed  unbelievers 
— say,  but  truly,  ^ Those  who  have  never  seen  the 
world  think  it  is  all  like  their  father’s  house.’  Pass 
the  bottle — ’tis  Cracow  wine  this,  and  not  worth 
four  ducats  the  fiask.  In  short,  the — the  two  ladies 
of  the  Count’s  family,  in  the  wildness  of  their  grief, 
— Mariolizza  especially, — on  hearing  of  the  death 
of  Mierowitz,  permitted  their  tongues  to  run  riot, 
and  to  say  such  things  of  Her  Imperial  Majesty  and 
some  of  her  favorites,  such  as  Count  Orloff,  Lanskoi, 
the  Grenadier,  and  so  forth,  as  no  woman  would 
pardon,  you  understand  ; so  they  are  to  be  given  in 
succession  to  le  maitre  d^entre  les  ^qaules — the 
master  of  the  shoulders,”  added  Ylasfief,  with  a 
species  of  laugh  at  the  strange  expression  wliich  he 
saw  gathering  in  Balgonie’s  face. 

Explain,  I implore  you,  explain  I ” asked  the 


OVER  THEIR  WLISTE. 


227 


latter,  with  quivering  lips,  as  he  set  down  a crystal 
goblet  of  Hungarian  wine  untasted  on  the  table. 

Mademoiselle  Mariolizza — but  you  don’t  drink 
fairly,  Ivanovitch — has  received  six  blows  of  the 
knout.  The  torturer  is  a new  man,  and  mangled 
her  cruelly.  She  has  had  her  tongue  cut  out,  and 
her  forehead  branded  with  the  executioner’s  mark,^ 
and  she  goes  to  Siberia  as  soon  as  she.recovers ; but 
she  will  never  reach  it  alive,  even  if  she  escapes  the 
fever  that  has  now  seized  her ; for  as  the  whole 
family  has  been  degraded, — declared  infamous  and 
without  protection, — being  tongueless,  she  will  be- 
come the  prey  of  the  Cossacks  en  route.  Once  be- 
yond the  Volga,  we  never  know  what  happens.  The 
Count’s  daughter  will  undergo  exactly  similar  pun- 
ishment; and,  if  she  survives  it,  they  will  be  merci- 
fully permitted  to  travel  together  : and  there  ends 
the  House  of  Mierowitz,  which  boasts  of  its  descent 
from  Ruric  of  Kiev — Riiric  the  Varagian  of  Old 
Ladoga ! ” 

With  wonderful  coolness  of  manner,  over  his  wine 
and  pipe,  almost  with  an  occasional  jest,  the  cruel 
and  snakelike  Vlasfief — who,  as  a parvenu  of  the 
foundling  hospital  (the  son  of  a goat,)  hated  the 
hereditary  aristocracy — detailed  these  matters ; and 
Balgonie  felt  as  if  a black  cloud  enveloped  him. 
He  heard  the  Captain  talking ; but  his  mind  and 


The  latter  punishment  is  abolished  now. 


228 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


thoughts  were  far,  far  away;  and  after  a time  he 
found  himself  alone.- 

yiasfief  had  mounted  and  ridden  off ; and  me- 
chanically, like  an  automaton,  Balgonie  had  bidden 
him  adieu  at  the  portico  of  the  cafe,  and  returned  to 
finish  his  wine,  as  one  in  a waking  dream  : nor  was 
it  until  the  bell  of  St.  Isaac’s  tolled  midnight,  when 
the  lights  were  burned  low,  the  fire  in  the  peitchka 
had  died  away,  the  decanters  were  empty,  and  he 
saw  a drowsy  waiter  hovering  near  him,  that  he  rose 
to  depart ; for  to  him,  now,  all  places  seemed  alike. 

In  the  street  a shower  of  tears  revived  him  ; and 
he  wept  unseen,  like  a great  boy,  while  grinding  his 
teetli  and  twisting  his  mustaches  like  a furious  and 
desperate  man.  Russia,  her  laws,  her  rulers,  her 
very  air,  he  loathed  and  detested.  But  what  was  he 
to  do  ? — which  way  was  he  to  turn  ? — ^was  he  to 
permit  these  horrors,  and  live  ? 

He  had  been  present  when  the  Regiment  of  Smo- 
lensko  guarded  the  punishment  of  Madame  Lapou- 
chin,  one  of  the  most  beautiful  women  of  the  Im- 
perial Court,  where  she  shone  like  a planet,  was 
loved,  admired,  and  more  than  once  fought  for.  An 
alleged  conspiracy  brought  her  to  the  knout  in  all 
her  nude  loveliness,  in  the  light  of  open  day ; and 
Charlie  remembered  that  sickening  scene,  before  the 
eyes  of  assembled  thousands,  and  how,  as  the  Abbe 
d’Anterroche  records,  in  a few  moments  all  the 
skin  of  her  tender  back  was  cut  away  in  small  slips, 


OYER  THEIR  WINE. 


229 


most  of  which  remained  hanging  on  her  shift.  Her 
tongue  was  cut  out,  immediately  after ; and  she  was 
banished  into  Siberia.’’ 

Oh  Natalie,  Natalie ! ” he  could  but  repeat, 
while  he  wrung  his  hands ; and  thus  the  dawn  of  day 
found  him. 

After  mature  consideration  of  his  position,  his 
powerlessness,  and  the  difficulties  that  beset  him, 
with  the  horrors  impending  over  Natalie,  poor  Char- 
lie Balgonie  felt  maddened,  crushed,  and  heart- 
broken. Could  he  see  her  perish  without  a struggle, 
an  effort,  however  reckless,  fruitless,  and  futile,  on 
her  behalf,  even  if  he  pistoled  the  executioner? 
Could  he  know  that  she  too,  probably,  would  die,  in 
agony  and  mutilation,  a horrible  and  ignominious 
death,— she,  so  gentle,  delicate,  and  pure, — and 
would  he  survive  it  ? 

Hearts  will  break  in  this  life,”  says  a recent 
writer  ; it  is  the  nature  of  them  ; but  if  God  wills 
it,  and  it  were  possible,  it  is  honester,  braver,  and 
nobler  to  live  than  to  die.”  Most  true  ; but  to  live 
is  to  hope.  Balgonie  vaguely,  but  sternly,  resolved 
that  he  would  do  something,  or — like  the  hero  of 
a melodrama — die  in  the  attempt ; ” but  being  a 
poor,  bewildered,  loving  young  fellow,  he  could  in 
no  way  practically  see  what  that  something  might  be. 

Let  not  the  reader  flatter  himself  or  herself  that 
their  own  beloved  country  was  entirely  free  from 
legal  barbarism  at  this  time  ; for  in  the  very  year 


230 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


of  Ivan'S  murder, — the  fourth  year  of  the  reign  of 
His  Majesty  George  III., — a woman  was  hurried  at 
the  stake  in  Ilchester  for  poisoning  her  husband.' 
During  the  reign  of  his  son,  more  than  one  head 
was  chopped  off  for  treason ; and  women  were 
flogged  by  the  tap  of  drum,  for  petty  theft,  at  the 
Market  Cross  of  Edinburgh.  Neither  need  the  su- 
perstitions of  the  poor  Muscovites  excite  surprise, 
when  we  And,  in  1867,  Highlanders  in  Scotland 
putting  clay  figures  into  running  streams  to  bring 
comsumption  and  wasting  upon  their  enemies ; 
burying  a living  cock  (as  the  Pagan  sacrificed  to 
Hermes)  to  cure  epilepsy ; and  a woman  in  Somer- 
setshire"*^ cooking  toads  in  a pan,  exactly  as  the 
black  and  midnight  hags  ” did  in.  the  days  of 
Macbeth,  for  the  amiable  purpose  of  bewitching  her 
neighbors.  So  truly  does  the  world  reproduce  it- 
self, in  spite  of  its  boasted  civilization. 

The  next  day  was  not  far  advanced  when  Bal- 
gonie  was  summoned  by  General  Weymarn,  whose 
staff  he  had  been  resolving  to  quit ; but  for  what 
purpose,  or  whether  to  go,  he  knew  not.  With 
something  of  a shudder,  he  beheld  the  Stepniak — 
the  comrade  and  confederate  of  the  late  Nicholas 
Paulovitch — ^leaving  the  General’s  quarters. 

Save  that  he  wore  scarlet  livery  of  his  new 
trade, — ^torture  and  death, — he  was  unchanged,  and 


^ W^^tern  Gazette ^ September^  1867, 


OVER  THIillt  WINE. 


231 


was  the  same  hideous  and  ill-visaged  giant — with 
square  shoulders,  enormous  beard,  mouse-like  eyes, 
hail'  shorn  off  straight  across  the  beetle  brows,  and 
the  pine-apple  shaped  head — whom  Balgonie  had 
seen  in  the  hut  where  the  wretched  Podatchkine 
perished.  He  was  now  public  executioner  of  St. 
Petersburg ; under  his  felon  hands  had  poor  Miero- 
witz  and  Mariolizza  been,  and  ere  long  would  Na- 
talie be  ! 

Weymarn  was  a grave  and  stern,  yet  not  unkind, 
old  soldier ; and  on  preceiving  that  his  young  aide- 
de-camp  looked  pale,  he  spoke  to  him  with  unusual 
kindness,  and  added  : — 

I am  sorry  to  say,  that  I have . a new  duty  of 
importance  for  you  to  perform.” 

Thanks,  General ; any  excitement  is  better  than 
— than  idleness.” 

True.  You  will  have  to  ride  to  Schlusselburg 
with  an  escort,  composed  of  six  Cossacks  of  the 
Imperial  Guard,  and  bring  hither  in  a kabitka  the 
sum  of  eighty  thousand  roubles,  which  are  there  in 
canvass  bags,  sealed.  They  have  been  levied  on 
the ‘estates  of  the  Count  Mierowitz.  You  will  re- 
ceive them  from  the  officer  commanding  there  ; give 
a signed  receipt,  and  deliver  them  into  the  Imperial 
Treasury.” 

Balgonie  bowed  in  silence. 

The  General,  who,  of  course,  knew  well  the  cor- 
rupt venality  of  the  Russian  service,  added  : — 


232 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


“ If  the  sum  is  brought  entire  to  the  Treasury, 
Carl  Ivanovitch,  a reasonable  gratuity  will,  of 
course,  be  paid  you. 

“Excellency,  I require  none  for  doing  my  duty, 
either  in  this  or  any  other  matter,’’  replied  Balgonie 
coldly,  even  haughtily. 

“ As  you  please,  sir, — as  you  please.  Some 
among  us  might  be  less  particular,”  said  the  old 
General,  tugging  his  grisly  mustaches.  “ And 
stay ; by-the-bye,  there  is  a prisoner  in  Schlussel- 
burg, whose  sentence  is  tp  be  executed  to-morrow, 
in  presence  of  the  assembled  troops  and  people 
here ” 

Balgonie  thought  of  but  one  prisoner  there ; and 
an  icy  chill  came  over  him,  as  Weymarn  said — 

“ With  the  escort  and  the  kabitka.  Captain,  you 
will,  at  the  same  time,  bring  the  culprit  here.” 

“ And — and  this  pris — on — oner.  Excellency  ?” 
faltered  the  poor  fellow. 

“Is  Jagouski,  the  Cossack,  who  so  severely 
wounded  Colonel  Bernikoff  when  in  the  execution 
of  his  duty.” 

Charlie  breathed  more  freely. 

“ An  order  will  be  necessary  for  you — a special 
order : since  the  affair  of  that  wretched  young  fel 
low  Micro witz,  we  cannot  be  too  particular ; so  take 
this : — 

“ ^ To  the  officer  commanding  in  Schlusselburg. 

“^Tou  are  hereby  directed  to  deliver  to 


OVER  THEIR  WINE. 


233 


Captain  Carl  Ivanovitch  Balgonie,  of  the  Smolensko 
Regiment,  the  prisoner  who  is  to  be  executed  to 

moriow.  ^ Weymarn,  Lieutenant  General.'^ 

“ For  the  delivery  of  the  money,  here  is  a sep- 
arate order  from  the  Treasurer. — Adieu.’^ 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

WILL  HE  SUCCEED  ? 


Balgonie  left  the  presence  of  General  Wey- 
marn,  a sudden  light  broke  through  the 
darkness  of  his  mind — an  unlooked-for  thought ; and 
hope  suddenly  inspired  him,  and  a prayer  of  thanks 
to  Heaven  rose  to  his  lips*  therefore.  No  prisoner 
was  actually  designated  by  name  in  the  written 
order  of  the  General ! 

Thus,  in  lieu  of  the  Cossack  Jagouski,  he  would 
demand  that  Natalie  Mierowna  be  given  into  his 
custody ; and  with  her  he  would  escape,  quit  Russia 
and  the  service  of  the  Empress  at  all  risks. 

He  had  no  papers — ^no  leave  of  absence,  or  pass- 
port ; but,  as  the  epaulette  is  an  all-powerful  badge 
in  Russia,  his  uniform  and  his  sabre  would  be  pass- 
ports enough.  For  the  rest,  he  must  trust  to  his 
own  love  and  courage,  and  to  his  knowledge  of  the 
country.  But  then  there  was  the  Cossack  escort — 
how  was  he  to  rid  himself  of  it  ? The  same  kind 
Heaven  which  favored  and  inspired  him  now,  would 
not  fail  to  do  so,  he  hoped,  when  the  crisis  came. 

While  his  best  horse  was  being  saddled  and  ac- 

countred,  and  even  when  the  escort  was  at  th^  door^ 
234 


WILL  HE  SUCCEED? 


235 


lie  consulted,  till  the  last  moment,  the  map  of 
Russia,  and  also  that  of  Finland,  which  was  not 
ceded  to  the  latter  till  forty-four  years  after ; and 
he  made  notes  of  his  proposed  route.  Escape 
by  sea,  by  the  Lake  of  Ladoga,  or  by  tlie  shore  of 
the  Gulf,  were  alike  impossible. 

' There  was  no  way  for  it  but  to  ride,  at  all 
hazards,  toward  the  frontier  of  Finland,  or  the 
shores  of  the  Lake  of  Saima ; they  would  there  be 
safe,  beyond  pursuit — safe  among  the  hospitable 
Swedes,  who  are  always  hostile  to  the  grasping  and 
aggressive  Russians.  And  so  for  nearly  an  hour  he 
sat,  compass  in  hand,  calculating  the  chances  and 
measuring  the  distances,  while  his  brain  grew  giddy, 
and  his  heart  was  sick,  with  mingled  hope,  anxiety, 
and  a love  that  was  full  of  terror  and  compassion. 

At  last  he  saw  his  way  clearly,  as  he  thought, 
through  Viborg,  from  Schlusselburg,  north-west- 
ward, in  safety.  He  put  all  the  money  he  pos- 
sessed— not  much  certainly — about  his  person  in 
gold;  filled  his  cartridge-box  with  ammunition,  and 
buckled  on  his  sabre. 

‘^By  this  time  to-morroF^’  he  muttered,  as  he 
glanced  at  his  watch  the  game  will  have  been  won 
or — lost ! ” 

He  then  mounted,  with  a resolute  heart,  and  set 
forth,  having  with  him  a light  kabitka,  or  covered 
wagpn,  drawn  by  a single  horse,  and  attended  by 
iuB  escOTt — six  Malo-Russian  Cossacks,  who  wor^ 


236 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


the  uniform  of  Hussars,  and  who  were  all  stout, 
athletic,  and  noble-looking  fellows,  whose  clean- 
limbed, active,  and  hardy  little  horses,  unmatched 
for  strength  and  speed,  made  Balgonie  speculate 
painfully  and  anxiously  on  his  slender  chance  of 
outstripping  them,  if  pursued. 

It  was  considerably  past  the  noomof  an  October 
day — a dark,  lowering,  and  ominous  day — when 
they  set  out  for  Schlusselburg,  and  erelong  the  rain 
began  to  fall  heavily,  soaking  the  Hussar  finery  of 
the  Cossacks  of  the  Guard;  but  Charlie  Balgonie 
rode  silently  on  at  their  head,  heedless  of  the  blind- 
torrents  and  the  bellowing  wind ; though  he  little 
knew  that  as  the  darkness  increased,  and  the  early 
night  drew  on,  that  the  waters  of  the  lake  and 
river  were  rising  fast,  and  that  a peril,  of  which  ,he 
had  no  conception,  already  menaced  the  existence 
of  i^atalie. 

But  her  voice  seemed  to  be  ever  whispering  in 
his  ear — 

Carl,  Carl — my  beloved  Carl,  come  to  my  aid 
— save  me — help  me,  if  you  love  me ! ” 

When  they  were  mid-way  to  Schlusselburg,  the 
kabitka  driver,  who  was  either  sleepy  or  tipsy,  fell 
awkwardly  from  his  seat,  and  broke  his  right  arm. 
What  was  to  be  done  now  ? 

No  Cossack  of  the  Guard  would  condescend  to 
supply  his  place,  and  for  more  than  an  hour^  the 
party  remained  halted  in  a desolate  spot,  near  a 


WILL  They  StTCOLED? 


237 


pine  wood,  while  looking  about  to  capture  the 
first  peasant,  serf,  or  civilian  of  any  kind,  whom 
they  might  meet,  and  press  him  into  the  service,  as 
a temporary  whip,  in  the  employ  of  tlie  Empress. 

A skulking  and  somewhat  sulky  boor,  in  a fur 
cap  and  canvas  caftan,  leather  leggings  and  bark 
shoes,  who  had  been  smoking  his  pipe  under  a great 
tree,  was,  ere  long,  discovered,  dragged  forward, 
and,  with  sundry  oaths  and  threats,  commanded  to 
mount  the  shaft  and  act  as  driver,  which  he  did, 
with  a reluctance  he  was  at  no  pains  to  conceal. 

Knowing  how  necessary  it  was  to  control  or  to 
conciliate  this  new  acquisition,  Balgonie  asked  him 
a few  questions,  with  sternness,  but  yet  with  polite- 
ness. 

The  serf  was  a singularly  handsome  young  man, 
with  eagle-like  eyes,  and  an  aquiline  nose,  that  was 
almost  hooked  ; he  was  without  his  mustasche,  which 
seemed  to  have  been  recently  shaved  off ; but  he 
had  a curly  red  beard,  with  a complexion  of  well- 
nigh  Asiatic  darkness. 

“ Trust  me,  dear  Carl  Ivanovitch,’’  said  he,  in  a 
low  and  impressive  voice,  that  was  strangely  familiar 
to  Balgonie.  My  disguise,  I find  is  complete  indeed, 
when  it  deceives  even  you;  but  speak  in  French.” 

“ Your  disguise — yours?  ” 

Yes, — I am  Apollo  Usakoff,”  he  added  through 
his  teeth.  . 

‘‘  Heaven  be  blessed  for  this  new  omen  of  sue- 


238 


THE  SECRET  EISEATCH. 


cess  ? ” exclaimed  Balgonie,  in  French.  ^‘And  you 
were  not  drowned  ? ” 

No  ; I swam  down  the  Neva,  under  water,  escap- 
ing many  a bullet — -got  ashore,  and  reached  the  old 
place  in  the  wood,  where  Olga,  the  Gipsy,  stained 
my  face,  trimmed  and  dyed  my  beard,  as  you  see. 
She  is  quite  an  artist,  that  girl ! Even  Mariolizza 
w^ould  not  know  me  now.” 

Balgonie  sighed  as  tlie  poor  fellow  spoke.  Muti- 
lated and  disfigured  as  she  was  now,  would  he  have 
known  her  ? He  evidently  knew  nothing  of  the 
barbarities  to  whic^h  she  had  been  subjected,  so  Bal- 
gonie resolved,  mercifully,  to  j^eep  him  in  ignor- 
ance ; and  they  proceeded  at  an  easy  pace  together, 
he  keeping  his  horse  close  by  the  shaft  of  the  kab- 
itka,  on  which  the  pretended  peasant  rode ; and,  as 
they  spoke  in  French,  a language  unknown  to  their 
ignorant  and  half -savage  escort,  Usakoff,  in  referring 
to  the  late  event  and  its  failure,  poured  out  all  the 
bitterness,  the  hate,  and  fury  of  his  soul,  against  the 
Government,  the  Councillors,  and  the  rule  of  the 
Empress ; and,  of  course,  entered  with  fervor  into 
the  scheme  of  an  escape  with  Natalie.  But  still 
their  ultimate  plans  were  undecided,  when  they  saw 
the  red  fiash  of  the  evening  gun,  as  it  pealed  from 
Schlusselburg,  amid  the  murky  haze  of  a w^et  and 
storm}^  sunset ; and  erelong  they  saw  the  lights  that 
glittered  at  times  from  amid  tlie  massive  towers  and 
black  outline  of  that  old  castle  (the  scene  of  so  many 


WILL  THEY  SUCCEED? 


S39 


terrors,  sufferings,  and  atrocities)  streaming  and 
wavering  on  the  turbulent  waters  of  the  lake,  and 
the  wet  slime  of  the  sluices  and  ditches. 

When,  all  dripping  and  jaded,  the  escort  halted 
and  dismounted  under  the  castle  arch,  Balgonie  found 
that  some  changes  were  taking  place  in  the  execu- 
tive of  the  fortress. 

Bernikoff,  whose  wounds  had  been  inflamed  to 
gangrene,  by  passion,  rage,  and  vodka,  was  at  that 
moment  actually  on  his  death-bed,  with  Father  Chry- 
sostom kneeling  by  his  side.  The  old  sinner  was  in 
all  the  agonies  and  terrors  of  reviewing  his  past  life 
on  one  hand,  and  anticipating  the  coming  change  on 
the  other.  Many  pounds  of  perfumed  wax  candles 
were  flaming  now  round  the  effigy  of  St.  Sergius, 
whom,  in  weak  and  querulous  accents,  he  implored 
for  intercession,  alternately  with  the  Chaplain,  to 
whose  cassock  he  clung  tenaciously,  and  to  whom  he 
was  mingling  threats  of  punishment,  if  he  permitted 
him  to  fare  ill  in  the  other  world,  or  omitted  masses 
for  his  soul’s  repose.  And  that  superstition  and 
absurdity  might  not  be  wanting  amid  this  solemn 
but  repulsive  scene,  from  which  Balgonie  hurried 
away  with  more  disgust  than  pity,  Bernikoff  was 
dying  in  the  habit  of  friar ^ with  cowl,  cord,  beads, 
and  sandals,  hoping  even  on  his  death-bed,  as  Ivan 
the  Terrible  hoped,  when  similarly  arrayed  and  dis- 
guised, to  cheat  the  devil,  if  that  dread  personage 
came  for  his  sinful  soul. 


240 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


The  cowl  and  other  paraphernalia  he  had  obtained 
from  the  Chamberlain,  or  wardrobe-keeper,  of  the 
Troitza  monastery  near  the  Longa — a cowl  that  had 
laid  on  the  mummy  of  the  nncorrupted  saint  in  the 
silver-shrine ; — and  almost  with  his  last  breath,  he 
threatened  Father  Chrysostom  with  a drum-head 
court-martial  for  venturing  to  hint  that  this  attempt 
to  mask  his  past  life  was  vain  without  true  repent- 
ance. 

Leaving  this  scene,  Balgonie  presented  the  order 
of  General  Weymarn  and  that  of  the  Treasurer,  to 
Captain  Vlasfief,  who  was  now  in  command,  and  to 
whom  he  stated  that  “ the  prisoner  referred  to  was 
Mademoiselle  Natalie  Mierowna.” 

“ Carl  Ivanovitcli,”  said  the  Captain,  you  can- 
not think  of  leaving  to-night  in  such  a storm  of 
wind  and  rain  ? ” 

“ I’ve  seen  worse  in  Silesia,”  said  Balgonie,  look- 
ing to  the  locks  of  his  pistols. 

What  of  that  ? ” 

But  the  verbal  order  of  the  General  was  most 
peremptory.” 

“ Ah  ! — and  you  have  brought  a kabitka  for  the 
money  ? ” 

‘‘  A kabitka  for  the  prisoner,  also — so  be  quick, 
Captain.” 

‘‘  ’Tis  a large  sum  in  roubles,”  mused  the  other. 

I am  in  haste  to  be  gone  ! — the  prisoner — you 
hear  me  sir  ? ” said  Balgonie,  impatiently. 


WILL  THEY  SUCCEED 


241 


By  all  the  devils,  you  seem  more  anxious  about 
the  prisoner  than  the  treasure  !”  responded  Vlasfief 
sulkily,  as  he  knocked  the  ashes  from  his  pipe,  but 
still  delayed  to  move. 

You  have  my  orders — I come  in  the  name  of 
the  Empress — let  there  be  no  delay.  Captain 
Vlasfief,”  was  the  curt  reply. 

Bring  in  two  Cossacks  of  the  escort ; the 
money  is  here  in  seventy  bags,  each  containing  a 
thousand  roubles.” 

‘‘  Excuse  me,  but  the  order  of  the  Imperial 
Treasimer  says  expressly  eighty  sealed  bags  of  a 
thousand  each,”  said  Balgonie,  trembling  with 
anxiety,  yet  compelled  to  appear  to  take  an  interest 
when  he  really  felt  none. 

Ten  thousand  are  missing,”  said  Vlasfief, 
leisurely,  refilling  his  pipe. 

Missing!” 

Yes.  Suppose,”  he  added  in  a whisper,  ^‘sup- 
pose we  divide  the  lost  sum  betw^een  us,  and  offer  a 
thousand  to  the  Treasurer.” 

Impossible,  sir ! ” said  Balgonie,  with  a fiery 
and  impatient  manner. 

W ell,  well — there  are  the  other  ten  sealed 
bags,”  added  Captain  Vlasfief,  with  a dark  and 
stealthy  frown  of  greed  and  hate,  as  the  Cossacks 
tossed  the  whole  among  the  straw  of  the  kabitka : 
it  matters  little  ; but  I hope  you  may  not  find  the 
road  heset^  and  so  lose  the  whole.” 


242 


THE  8ECRET  DISPATCH. 


“To  be  forewarned,  sir,  is  to  be  forearmed,”  said 
Balgonie,  touching  his  pistols  ; for  he  quite  under- 
stood the  treachery  implied,  and  only  trembled  lest 
it  might  mar  his  dearest  plans.  “ And  now,  sir, 
for  my  prisoner.” 

“ If  she  be  not  drowned  ; for  the  lower  vaults 
are  apt  to  be  flooded  on  such  a night  as  this,  said 
Vlasflef  spitefully. 

Writhing  under  the  keen  glances  of  this  low  born 
Muscovite,  Belgonie  felt  that  all  now  depended  up- 
on his  outward  and  assumed  bearing  of  coolness  and 
carelessness.  Night  favored  him  in  this,  and  his 
face  was  almost  concealed.  Could  any  one  then 
have  read  his  heart,  as  he,  Usakoff,  two  Cossacks, 
and  two  soldiers  of  the  mainguard  made  their  way 
down,  down  through  dark  and  slimy  passages  and 
stairs,  till  they  were  foot  deep  and  then  knee  deep 
in  the  water  that  flooded  the  low  and  humid  corridors, 
off  which  were  the  arched  doors  of  numerous  cells 
— corridors  where  spiders  spun  their  webs,  rats  were 
swimming,  and  terrifled  bats  flew  wildly  to  and  fro  ! 

Erelong  they  reached  the  door,  through  the  cran- 
nies of  which  despairing  cries  and  painful  gaspings 
had  been  heard ; and  after  unlocking,  forced  it  open 
by  main  strength. 

“ A great  flood  of  water  poured  from  the  aper- 
ture amid  the  darkness,”  says  the  Utrecht  Gazette^ 
“ and  with  it  came  the  body  of  the  poor  lady,  who 
was  well  nigh  drowned.” 


WILL  THEY  SUCCEED? 


248 


So  the  red  light  seen  by  Natalie  was  no  fancy, 
but  that  of  the  lamp  which  was  borne  by  one  of 
those  who  came  just  in  time  to  save  her  from  the 
same  terrible  death  by  which  the  Princess  Orloff 
perished. 

Lest  all  might  be  perilled  by  a recognition,  Bal- 
gonie  was  compelled  to  retire  and  leave  her  in  the 
Chaplain’s  hands  till  she  was  restored  to  conscious- 
ness, to  warmth,  and  till  she  was  habited  anew ; 
and  he  passed  three  dreadful  hours  of  doubt  and 
anxiety,  while  pacing  to  and  fro  in  the  cold  and 
gloomy  archways  of  the  fortress,  and  having  to  con- 
ceal his  face  when  she  was  brought  forth  and  sup- 
ported into  the  kabitka,  to  which  two  fresh  horses 
were  now  traced.  Usakoff  sprang  on  the  shaft  and 
flourished  his  whip ; then  the  cossacks  and  Balgonie 
put  spurs  to  their  chargers,  and  clattered  over  the 
wet  drawbridge,  just  as  the  passing  bell  for  the  de- 
parture of  Bernikoff’s  tortured  spirit  rang  ominously 
and  solemnly  on  the  stormy  gusts  of  that  black  and 
gloomy  night. 

Balgonie,  instead  of  proceeding  by  the  way  he 
had  come,  avoided  the  towm  of  Schlusselburg,  and 
wheeled  off  to  the  right,  committing  himself  partly 
to  the  guidance  of  Usakoff,  and  quite  in  ignorance 
that,  about  an  hour  before,  Vlasfief,  who  could  by 
no  means  let  so  many  roubles  escape  without  paying 
toll,  had  beset  two  of  the  roads  by  chosen  followers 
of  his  own — men  whom  he  hoped  might  pass  foi* 


244 


THE  SECRET  1)ISPATCH. 


some  of  the  adherents  of  the  late  Prince  Ivan,  res- 
cuing the  daughter  of  the  exiled  Count  Mierowitz. 

A strange  incident  occurred  before  the  interment 
of  old  Bernikoff,  who  had  a pompous  military 
funeral.  The  bottom  of  his  grave  was  found  to  be 
on  fire ! 

A Scottish  doctor  (named  Rogersoji,  we  believe) 
at  Catharine’s  Court  attempted  to  explain  this  phe- 
nomenon, as  resulting  from  a species  of  ironstone 
which  was  saturated  with  the  phosphorus  supplied 
by  the  bones  of  old  interments,  and  which  had  been 
ignited  by  the  friction  of  the  sexton’s  shovel ; but 
the  superstitious  Russians  took  a very  different  and 
much  more  diabolical  view  of  the  matter,  and  laughed 
to  scorn  the  learned  opinion  of  the  Scottish  pundit. 


CHAPTEE  XXIT/ 


CONCLUSION. 

HEIE  horses  were  tolerably  refreshed  by  the 
^2/  halt  at  Schlusselburg,  and  the  nags  which 
drew  the  light  kabitka  had  been  quite  unused,  so  the 
whole  party  pushed  on  at  a brisk  pace  by  the  road 
towards  the  frontiers  of  Finland — the  Cossacks  of 
the  escort,  w^hatever  they  thought,  making  neither 
remark  nor  inquiry,  as  they  trusted  obediently  and 
implicitly  to  the  officer  who  led  them  ; but  the  dark- 
ness of  the  October  morning,  the  deep  and  muddy, 
stony  and  rough,  nature  of  the  roads,  and  the  vio- 
lence of  the  storm,  erelong  began  to  have  a severe 
effect  upon  their  cattle,  and,  to  the  great  satisfaction 
of  Balgonie,  two  of  the  troopers  gradually  dropped 
to  the  rear,  and  were  seen  no  more. 

Now  the  Corporal  of  the  Cossacks  ventured  to 
hint,  that  perhaps  they  were  not  pursuing  the  way 
they  had  come,  as  the  lights  in  St.  Isaac’s  Cathedral 
must  have  been  visible  long  ago  ; ” but  Balgonie  re- 
plied, haughtily  and  briefly,  that  he  had  special 
orders.” 

Then  the  Corporal  urged  a short  halt,  as  the 
horses  were  sinking ; but  again  Balgonie  replied, 
246 


246  THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 

that  he  had  peculiar  orders,  and  must  push  on.’^ 

After  passing  a little  village  with  a windmill, 
several  miles  from  the  shore  of  the  Lake  of  Ladoga, 
the  road  dipped  down  into  a dark  hollow,  between 
impending  crags  of  granite,  the  grey  faces  of  which 
were  already  beginning  to  brighten  in  the  first  light 
of  the  lagging  October  sun.  The  rain  and  wind 
were  over ; the  hollow  way  was  full  of  rolling  and 
perplexing  mist;  but  Usakoff  aflirmed  with  confi- 
dence that  he  knew  the  country  well. 

Out  of  the  grey  vapor,  from  both  sides  of  the 
path,  there  fiashed,  redly  and  luridly,  five  or  six 
muskets ! One  bullet  struck  white  splinters  from 
the  kabitka,  eliciting  a shriek  from  its  occupant ; 
another  whistled  through  the  mane  of  Charlie’s 
horse ; and  a third  killed  one  of  the  Cossacks,  who 
died  without  a groan,  for  it  passed  fairly  through 
his  temples. 

The  way  was  beset  by  armed  men,  whose  numbers 
and  disposition,  the  dim  light,  or,  rather,  the  dark- 
ness and  the  mist,  alike  served  to  conceal. 

“ Make  way,  in  the  name  of  the  Empress ! ” cried 
Balgonie,  dashing  forward,  with  his  sabre  drawn ; 
‘‘Nay,  I command  you,  on  your  peril  and  allegi- 
ance ! ” he  added,  as  the  threatening  words  of  Vlas- 
fief  occurred  to  him ; and,  to  his  astonishment  and 
dismay,  he  saw  that  personage  actually  appear, 
mounted  and  armed,  w’earing  a regimental  hat  and 
plume,  with  a kind  of  dark  green  tunic,  or  patrol 


OONOLUSION. 


247 


jacket;  richly  braided  with  gold,  and  trimmed  heavily 
wdth  black  ftir.  His  party,  who  seemed  all  on  foot, 
were  clad  like  peasants,  but  were  armed  with  mus- 
kets, which  they  were  rapidly  casting  about  and  re- 
loading. 

Halt,  in  the  name  of  the  Empress — halt,  I 
command  you  ! for  this  is  not  the  way  to  St. 
Petersburg,  whether  the  prisoner  and  treasure 
were  to  be  conveyed.  Treason  ! treason ! ” shouted 
the  Staff-Captain  Vlasfief. 

Balgonie  fired  a pistol  at  his  head ; but  the 
Captain’s  horse  reared,  or  was  compelled  to  do  so 
by  bit  and  spur,  for  the  bullet  pierced  its  throat ; 
and  with  an  oath,  Ylasfief  fell  on  the  pathway,  en- 
tangled in  the  stirrups  as  the  animal  sunk  under 
him. 

The  three  remaining  Cossacks,  who  were  some- 
what bewildered  by  the  attack,  by  the  appearance 
of  Ylasfief,  whom  they  knew,  and  whose  confident 
bearing  confirmed  certain  gathering  suspicions  that 
, something  was  wrong  as  to  their  route,  now  drew 
their  sabres,  aimed  several  blows  at  Usakoff’s  head, 
and  endeavored  to  cut  the  reins  of  his  horse,  or 
stab  it  between  the  shafts,  as  he  lashed  the  animal 
almost  to  racing  speed,  and  the  light  kabitka,  jolted, 
rolled,  and  bounded  along  the  rough  road  behind  it. 

By  another  pistol-shot  Balgonie  rid  himselP  of 
the  Cossack  Corporal,  whose  bridle  arm  he  broke, 
while  facing  about  and  galloping  in  rear  of  the 


248 


THE  SECRET  DISPATCH. 


kabitka ; and  now  with  wild  hallooes,  the  entire 
party  of  armed  men  followed  it  on  foot,  with  all 
speed,  up  a steep  slope,  over  which  the  path  wound. 

Usakoif  ground  his  teeth,  for  he  was  without 
weapons,  and  passive  in  the  flying  combat;  but, 
being  fertile  in  expedients,  he  tore  open  a bag  of 
roubles,  and  scattered  them  on  the  upland  road  with 
a ready  and  reckless  hand. 

The  bright  silver  coins  proved  too  exciting  for 
the  cupidity  of  the  pursuers,  who  loitered  to  pick 
them  up,  tumbling,  scrambling,  rising  and  falling 
over  each  other,  with  shouts,  curses,  and  maledic- 
tions, their  flre-arms  sometimes  exploding  the  while; 
and  so  the  whole  were  speedily  left  behind,  as  the 
kabitka,  guarded  now  by  Balgonie  alone,  was  driven 
along  a lonely  and  unfrequented  road,  that  led  to 
the  little  towm  of  Pomphela. 

Thanks,  dear  Usakoff — thanks  for  your  presence 
of  mind,’’  said  Balgonie ; I had  forgot  all  about 
those  roubles.” 

‘‘  Silver  has  achieved  for  us  what  neither  our 
lead  or  steel  would  have  done  !” 

But,  to  lighten  the  kabitka,  let  us  throw  out 
those  remaining  bags — this  perilous  lumber,  the 
intended  recapture  of  which  has  nearly  cost  us  our 
lives — honour — all,  at  the  hands  of  Ylasflef.” 

Nay,  nay,  nevor ! Lumber,  say  you  ? The 
roubles  are  Natalie’s — hers  and  mine — hers  and 
yours,  when  you  wed  her ; they  have  saved  us  once. 


CONCLUSION. 


24:9 


and  may  do  so  again,”  replied  Usakoff  cheerfully, 
as  the  sun  burst  forth  in  his  clear  October  splen- 
dor, and  they  saw  the  dome-shaped  cupola  of  the 
•Churcli  of  Pomphela  rising  with  a golden  gleam 
from  amid  the  white  morning  haze. 

There  Balgonie’s  uniform  and  a display  of  gold 
and  roubles  operated  powerfully  on  the  Postmaster 
who,  without  asking  for  passports  or  other  papers, 
at  once,  and  in  the  name  of  the  Empress,  supplied 
them  with  fresh  horses  for  the  frontier,  towards 
which,  after  procuring  some  proper  nourishment  and 
restoratives  for  Natalie,  they  pushed  on  without  a 
moment  of  unnecessary  delay. 

Ah,”  thought  Balgonie,  with  a shudder  and  a 
prayer  ; had  Jagouski’s  name  not  been  omitted  in 
that  order  of  Weymarn,  where  would  she  have  been 
now  ? ” 

Pale  with  sorrow  and  long  suffering,  her  face 
was  still  beautiful,  though  sorely  wasted  ; the  deep 
thoughtful  eyes  had  yet  a wealth — a world  of 
tenderness  in  their  liquid  depths ; and  the  long 
dark  hair  was  thick,  soft,  and  wavy  as  ever,  as  it 
fell  in  masses  behind  the  small,  compact,  and  finely- 
formed  head. 

Yet,  withal,  her  wi^etchedness  had  been  extreme, 
having  been  so  suddenly  and  rudely  rent  from  all 
those  habits  of  luxury  and  tender  nurture,  which 
had  become,  as  it  were,  a second  nature ; and  often, 
very  often,  had  it  occurred  to  her  in  her  later 


250 


The  secret  dispatch. 


misery  of  soul  that  the  repose  of  the  grave  is 
sweet,  and  that  there  cometh  after  death  a levelling 
and  making  even  of  things  which  would  at  last 
cure  all  her  evils.” 

But  all  was  changed  now ; and,  as  she  laid  her 
head  on  Charlie’s  breast,  she  felt  content — almost 
happy  ; and  the  horrors  that  hung  over  her  family 
alone  prevented  her,  as  yet,  from  being  completely 
so. 

No  trace  of  pursuers  were  behind  them  now', 
though  their  flight  must  by  this  time  have  been 
known  both  in  the  capital  and  at  Schlusselburg. 
But  in  those  days  there  w^ere  neither  railroads  nor 
electric  telegraphs  ; so,  riding  on  more  leisurely, 
Balgonie  changed  horses  again  near  Viborg,  and 
erelong  the  great  Lake  of  Saima  appeared  before 
them,  with  the  distant  hills  of  Swedish  Finland  be- 
yond its  friendly  w^aters. 

A boat  was  procured  there ; the  kabitka  was 
abandoned;  and  with  a shout  of  joy,  Usakoff  as- 
sisted the  Finnish  boatman  to*  hoist  the  great  lug- 
sail  to  catch  the  breeze  of  a balmy  and  beautiful 
evening,  as  they  bade  a long  farewell  to  Russia  and 
all  its  terrors. 

In  a quaint  old  Church  of  Finland,  by  the  eastern 
shore  of  the  Lake  of  Saima,  and  in  view  of  its  lit- 
tle archipelago  of  granite  isles, — a lonely  little  fane, 
buried  amid  groves  of  plum  and  cherry  trees,  built 
of  wood  and  painted  red,  wdth  a little  bell  jang- 


OONCLUSIOK. 


251 


ling  in  its  humble  belfry, — Charlie  Balgonie  and 
his  fugitive  bride  were  united  by  the  old  Curate, 
with  the  consent  of  the  Lutheran  Bishop  of  Heinola; 
and  there  a thousand  roubles  spent  among  the  poor 
spread  in  the  primitive  district  a happiness,  the 
tradition  of  which  is  still  remembered  with  many  a 
grateful  exaggeration. 

After  this,  poor  Usakoif,  finding  himself  perhaps, 
as  a third  person,  rather  in  the  way,  left  them  to 
become  a soldier  of  fortune  ; and  he  is  supposed  to 
have  perished  in  one  of  the  Polish  struggles  for 
freedom  ; at  least,  they  heard  of  him  no  more,  after 
their  final  journey  to  Scotland. 

Two  years  before  these  events,  it  would  appear 
that  Charlie’s  uncle,  the  godly  and  upright  ” 
Gamaliel  Balgonie,  merchant,  magistrate,  and  elder, 
had  departed  in  peace  to  sin  no  more,  leaving  the 
lands  and  possessions  of  Balgonie  unimpaired  ; and 
a long  tombstone  in  that  famous  city  of  the  dead, 
the  Howff  of  Dundee,  records  at  length  all  the 
virtues  which  his  contemporaries  in  general  and  the 
Presbytery  in  particular  believed  him  to  possess. 

So  Carl  Ivanovitch  became  once  more  Balgonie 
of  that  Ilk  ; andthe  roubles  of  Natalie  added  many 
a turret  and  many  an  acre  to  his  patrimonial  dwell- 
ing in  beautiful  Strathearn. 


L’ENVOI.— ILLUSTEATIYE  NOTE. 


[O  convince  the  reader  how  nearly  History  has 
been  followed  in  the  previous  pages,  we  shall 
take  the  liberty  of  inserting  the  subsequent  mani- 
festo, published  with  reference  to  the  death  of  Ivan 
lY. 


By  the  Grace  of  God,  we,  Catharine  the  Second, 
Empress  and  Autocratrice  of  all  the  Russias, 
&c.,  &c.,  to  all  whom  these  presents  may  con- 
cern : 

When  by  the  divine  will,  and  in  compliance  with 
the  unanimous  desires  of  our  faithful  subjects,  we 
ascended  the  throne  of  Russia,  we  were  not  ignorant 
that  Ivan,  son  of  Anthony,  Prince  of  Brunswick- 
Wolfenbuttel,  and  of  the  Princess  Anne  of  Meck- 
lenburgh  was  still  alive.  This  Prince,  as  is  well 
known,  was  immediately  after  his  birth  unlawfully 
declared  heir  to  the  imperial  crown ; hut^  by  the 
decrees  of  Providence,  he  was  soon  after  irrevoca- 
bly excluded  from  that  high  dignity,  and  the  sceptre 
was  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  lawful  heiress,  Eliza- 
beth (daughter  of  Peter  the  Great),  our  beloved 
aunt  of  glorious  memory. 

252 


l’envoi. 


253 


“ After  we  had  ascended  the  throne,  and  offered 
up  to  Heaven  our  just  thanksgiving,  the  first  object 
tliat  employed  our  thoughts,  in  consequence  of  that 
humanity  which  is  so  natural  to  us,  was  the  unhappy 
situation  of  that  Prince,  who  was  dethroned  by  di- 
vine Providence^  and  had  been  unfortunate  since  his 
birth  .... 

‘‘  To  prevent,  therefore,  ill-intentioned  persons 
from  giving  him  any  trouble,  or  from  making  use 
of  his  name  to  disturb  the  public  tranquility,  we 
gave  him  a guard,  and  placed  about  his  person  two 
officers,  in  whose  fidelity  and  integrity  we  could  con- 
fide. These  were  Captain  Ylasfief  and  Lieutenant 
Tschekin,  who,  by  their  long  military  services,  de- 
served a suitable  recompense,  and  a station  in  which 
they  might  pass  quietly  the  remainder  of  their  days. 
They  were  accordingly  charged  with  the  care  of  the 
Prince,  and  were  strictly  enjoined  to  let  none  ap- 
proach him.  Yet,  all  these  precautions  were  not 
sufficient 

“ A Pat-par ooschick  (a  sub-lieutenant)  of  the 
Regiment  of  Smolensko,  a native  of  the  Ukraine, 
Basil  Mierowitz,  (gi’andson  of  the  first  rebel  that  fol- 
lowed Mazzeppa),  took  it  into  his  head  to  make  use 
of  this  Prince,  to  advance  his  fortune  at  all  events, 
without  being  restrained  by  a consideration  of  the 
bloody  scene  that  such  an  attempt  might  occasion. 
In  order  to  execute  this  detestable,  dangerous,  and 
desperate  project,  he  contrived,  dmdng  our  absence 


254 


L^ENYOI. 


in  Livonia,  to  be  upon  guard  in  the  fortress  of 
Schlusselburg,  where  the  guard  is  relieved  every 
eight  days;  and  the  15th  of  last  month,  about  two 
in  the  morning,  he  called  out  the  main  guard,  formed 
it  in  line,  and  ordered  the  soldiers  to  load  with  ball. 
Bernikoff,  Governor  of  the  fortress,  came  out  of  his 
apartment,  and  asked  Mierowitz  the  reason  of  the 
disturbance,  but  received  no  other  answer  from 
this  rebel  than  a blow  with  the  butt-end  of  his 
musket 

Captain  Ylasiief  and  Lieutenant  Tschekin  seeing 
that  it  was  impossible  to  resist  such  a superior  force, 
and  considering  the  unhappy  consequences  that  must 
ensue  from  the  deliverance  of  the  person  who  was 
committed  to  their  care,  after  deliberating  together, 
took  the  only  step  that  they  thought  proper,  to 
maintain  public  tranquillity,  which  was  to  cut  short 
the  days  of  the  unfortunate  Ivan,  Mierowitz,  on 
seeing  the  dead  body  of  the  Prince,  was  so  con- 
founded by  a sight  he  so  little  expected,  that  he 
acknowledged  his  temerity  and  guilt,  and  discovered 
his  repentance  to  the  troops,  whom,  about  an  hour 
before,  he  had  seduced  from  their  duty,  and  rendered 
the  accomplices  of  his  crime. 

Then  it  was  that  the  two  officers  who  had  nipped 
this  rebellion  in  the  bud,  joined  the  Governor  of  the 
fortress  in  securing  this  rebel,  and  bringing  back  the 
soldiers  to  their  duty.  They  also  sent  to  our  Privy 
Councillor  Count  Panin,  under  whose  orders  they 


l’envoi. 


255 


acted^  a relation  of  this  event,  which,  though  un- 
happy,  has  nevertheless,  under  the  protection  of 
Heaven^  prevented  still  greater  calamities.  This 
Senator  despatched  immediately  (Colonel) 

Caschkin,  with  sufficient  instructions  to  maintain 
tranquillity  on  the  spot  (or  where  the  assassination 
was  committed),  and  sent  us,  at  the  same  time,  a 
circumstantial  account  of  the  whole  affair.  In  con- 
sequence of  this,  we  ordered  Lieutenant-General 
Weymarn,  of  the  division  of  St.  Petersburg,  to  take 
the  necessary  information  on  the  spot ; and  the  con- 
fession of  the  villain  himself,  who  has  acknowledged 
his  crime. 

“ Sensible  of  its  enormity  and  consequences  with 
regard  to  the  peace  of  our  country,  we  have  re- 
ferred the  whole  affair  to  the  consideration  of  our 
Senate,  which  we  have  ordered,  jointly  with  the 
Synod,  to  invite  the  three  first  classes  and  the  Presi- 
dents of  all  the  Colleges  to  hear  the  verbal  relation 
of  General  Weymarn,  who  has  takentheproperin- 
formations,  to  pronounce  sentence  in  consequence 
thereof,  and  to  present  it  to  us,  for  confirmation  of 
the  same.  Catharine.’’ 

By  a singular  species  of  sophistry,  the  guilt  of 
Ivan’s  death  is  thus,  by  a subsequent  document, 
transferred  to  Basil  Mierowitz : — 

As  the  violent  death  of  the  unfortunate  Prince 
Ivan  was  the  immediate  consequence  of  the  des- 


256 


L^EJSrVOI. 


perate  attempt  of  Mierowitz,  so  must  this  officer  be 
considered  as  the  principle  cause  of  this  assassina- 
tion^-'iiay,  even  regarded  as  the  murderet^  of  that 
unhappy  PrmceP 

To  this,  five  Russian  Bishops  appended  their 
signatures.  * 

Ylasfief  was  made  a General,  and  his  Lieutenant 
a Colonel,  in  the  following  year  with  a pension  of 
ten  thousand  roubles  each. 


THE  GREAT  LONDON  SUCCESS! 


VICE  VERSA; 

Or,  A Lesson  to  Fathers. 


By  F.  ANSTEY. 


PRICES : 

No.  80.  LfOvell’s  Library,  12mo.,  large  type,  neat  paper  cover,  - .20 

1 vol.,  12mo.,  cloth,  gilt,  -------  .50 


faCX'TRAC'TS  KSS.OM  JifOXICKS  BY  XHK  KI^GICISKI 

VANITY  FAIR. 

“This  book  (‘Vice  Versa’)  is,  in  our  opinion,  the  drollest  work  ever  written  in  the 
English  language.” 

ACADEMY. 

“ It  is  certainly  the  best  book  of  its  kind  that  has  appeared  for  a long  time  ; and  in  the 
way  of  provoking  laughter  by  certain  old-fashioned  means,  which  do  not  involve  satire  or 
•sarcasm,  it  has  few  rivals.” 

ATIIENuEUM. 

” The  whole  story  is  told  with  delightful  drollery  and  spirit,  and  there  is  not  a dull  page 
1b.  the  volume.  It  should  be  added  that  Mr.  Anstey  writes,  well,  and  in  a style  admirably 
suited  to  his  amusing  subject.” 

COURT  JOURNAL. 

“The  story  is  told  with  so  much  wit  and  gayety  that  we  can  not  be  deceived  in  our 
impres.sion  of  the  future  career  of  F.  Anstey  being  destined  to  attain  the  greatest  success 
among  the  most  popular  authors  of  the  day.” 

NOTES  AND  QUERIES. 

“This  is  a thoroughly  laughable  book,  and  in  days  when  most  authors,  like  the  poet  of 
T>r.  Oliver  Wendell  Holmes’s  verses,  seem  to  shrink  from  ‘ writing  as  funny  as  they  can,’  it 
richly  deserves  the  exceptional  welcome  due  to  an  exceptional  effort.” 

WORLD. 

“ The  idea  of  a father  and  son  exchanging  their  identity  has  suggested  itself  to  many 
minds  before  now.  It  is  illustrated  in  this  book  with  surprising  freshness,  originality,  and 
force.  . . . The  book  is  more  than  wildly  comic  and  amusing;  it  is,  in  parts,  exceedingly 
pathetic.” 

SATURDA  Y REVIEW. 

“ If  there  ever  was  a book  made  up  from  beginning  to  end  of  laughter,  jTt  not  a comic 
Look,  or  a ‘ merry  ’ book,  or  a book  of  jokes,  or  a book  of  pictures,  or  a jest  book,  or  a tom- 
fool-book,  but  a perfectly  sober  and  serious  book,  in  a reading  of  which  a sober  man  may 
laugh  without  shame  from  beginning  to  end,  it  is  the  new  book  called  ‘Vice  Versa  ; or,  a 
Lesson  to  FatJiers.’  . . . We  close  the  book,  recommending  it  very  earnestlv,  to  all 
fathers,  in  the  first  instance,  and  their  sons,  nephews,  uncles,  and  male  cousins  next.” 


JOHN  . LOVELL  C’O.,  Publishers,  14  & IG  Vesoy  Street,  New  York. 


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